The Fairy and the Hunter
by cocacola8306
Summary: A love that is perfect, but destined to die. Secrets must be kept and lies must be told. The boundaries of Light and Darkness are broken for the first time in centuries, but is this good or bad? This is the story of two brave individuals who risked life, friends, family and happiness for each other. Will it all come crashing down? Rated T because it curses minimally.
1. Once Upon a Blue Moon

**Ok, I know I should be working on The Spell... but hey, when I get an idea I run with it. Set before Roxy tells her father her secret, but she has her wings because it's my story and it would just make more sense ;) The meeting between Duman and Roxy is odd, but whatever. Enjoy!**

* * *

It had nearly been a month since he died. That fairy hunter who loved his older brothers to the point where he sacrificed himself to save them. They missed him terribly, and turned their wrath on the Winx. Ogron, Gantlos and Anagan had never been so ferocious, and the girls were almost defeated several times. If it weren't for the Specialists, they would be dead, Roxy would be powerless and Earth would be enslaved. It was after another close call that Roxy was walking home from the battlefield, mindful of a burn on her arm. "_God damn those fairy hunters! Dad is going to __**kill**__ me if he sees this." _The streets were pitch black, apart from a few lamp posts. She thought it was deserted, but she soon saw that she was mistaken. The lone silhouette of a person, a rather well built man, stood far in front of her. "_That's weird, no one comes out here at night," _she thought. The man was just leaning against a building on the other side of the street, looking up at the blue moon. As she crossed in front of him, she looked over again. Now, the light was at an angle where she could see him. He was, indeed, very tall and muscular. He had on a black tank top with red chains and a gray, long sleeved shirt underneath. Covering his legs was a long black skirt with more red chains, and he had on black combat boots. Roxy was shocked, and she had a strange feeling in her stomach. "_It can't be…"_ His pink hair was styled in a Mohawk, he had golden eyes that penetrated through any darkness, and sported his signature chain earring. There was no mistaking it; the man across the street was Duman. Roxy froze mid-step with a dumbfounded look on her face. Her expression went from total shock to a bit of a smile. Duman must have noticed someone watching him, because he whipped his head from left to right, and his gaze settled on the pink haired fairy across the street. She smiled her shy little smile and waved at him, and to this he raised an eyebrow. Roxy had always been afraid of him before he "died", why was she just acting like an old friend? She started walking towards him as he watched her with concealed suspicion, unsure of what she wanted. "Hey," she said bashfully.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Nothing much," she said before trailing off. They stood in silence for a few moments, unsure of what to say. "What happened to you?" She finally asked. Duman returned his gaze to the moon, deep in thought.

"I got lost."

"Everyone thinks you're dead, and your friends are dominating us," she said jokingly. "Can I have a bit more detail?" He laughed softly; young fairies were always full of questions. Not that he could talk, he was only four years older than her.

"Well, when that spell of Nabu's was supposed to kill us, I pushed the others out of the way. It hurt like hell when it hit me, but it actually sent me to the Omega Dimension. I guess he needs to get better with his spells. After a while, I regained enough strength to heal my injuries and get back on Earth," he said. Judging by Roxy's face, she was captivated by this simple story. "_Why am I telling her this? Why am I even talking to her?" _For the first time in a long time, Duman was questioning his actions.

"It really took that long?" she asked.

"It isn't exactly easy to generate power in the Omega Dimension."

"Oh, right," she said while blushing. He chuckled again, she was so timid.

"By the way, why do you ask what happened?"

"Because I was worried about you," she admitted without really thinking. When she saw his confused face and realized what she said, she covered her mouth and blushed profusely. "S-sorry," she said as she started running away. Duman stopped her by grabbing her wrist. When she looked back at him, he looked concerned.

"What's wrong?" he asked. He started to get a foreign feeling in his chest, and his heart was beating faster. This had never happened before, but he remembered that this was how Anagan claimed he felt around Flora. "_Is this that thing when you like someone? Anagan said it was like what we feel for each other, but a different kind… Weird," _he thought. "You were worried?"

"It was just a slip of the tongue, no big deal," she lied.

"Where the tongue slips, it speaks the truth…" Duman trailed off. The pair stood in silence, not allowing their eyes to part ways. After a few moments in this position, Duman's look of sheer confusion turned into a loving smile. To this, Roxy only blushed more. "Let's just be honest with each other, ok?" Her tensed up muscles relaxed after he spoke.

"Ok…" she replied, nervous about sharing her feelings with him. She took a deep breath and let her next words out as fast as a machine gun. "The truth is I kinda sorta really like you and stuff but I haven't told anyone because they would think I was out of my mind or try to kill me or something," she cringed, preparing to be criticized. He laughed his slow laugh, happy they felt the same way. "What?"

"The feelings are mutual," he replied. She looked back up at his kind smile and could tell that he really meant it. Her look of obvious relief made Duman laugh quietly again. He was much less scary without his friends around, and much more attractive. "We should hang sometime."

"I'm down with that, but where? If ANYONE we know finds out, they'll be pissed," Roxy had a point.

"Well, I have a townhouse, and the others don't need to know I'm back just yet," he added that familiar devious tone that Roxy knew so well. "Here," he said, a puff of smoke overtaking his hand. "Take this." Roxy held the house key in her palm, it was on a silver chain with paw print charms. Somehow, this simple little gesture gave her a warm feeling inside.

"Thanks," she said. "You wouldn't happen to have a phone, would you?"

"Nah, too easy to track. But, I have the next best thing," he said while closing his eyes. He concentrated and started to glow. Roxy watched with a perplexed face, and then she heard something. "_This is way better," _Duman's voice was in her head, he had made a psychic connection with her.

"_Awesome," _she was impressed. "_Now we can talk to each other whenever we want."_

"Right," he said out loud. His eyes traveled to her upper arm, where the burn sat clear as day. "What happened to your arm?"

"Oh," Roxy said as she looked at it, "Ogron burned me with a spell about twenty minutes ago."

"Looks painful, let me see it," he said. She lifted her arm towards him and he held it carefully. His hands were warm, and it made her want to fall into his embrace and never let go. He healed it with no trouble, and she didn't even feel it.

"Thanks," she said. "It was killing me," she added the next part with a bit of flirtatiousness. "I didn't know you had healing magic," Duman laughed again.

"I guess there's a lot you don't know about me," he said with that devious tone of his.

"Well I guess I'll just have to learn then," she said. They looked at each other's eyes, so happy they could both finally be heard. They were no longer trapped behind the walls that Light and Darkness had built to guard against each other. Roxy let out a small giggle while in one swift motion she wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head on his chest. He was taken by surprise at first, but then he brought his strong arms around her waist and laid his head on hers. They parted and looked back into each other's eyes. Roxy started to frown.

"What's wrong, Love?"

"I should probably be getting home, my dad won't be too happy to learn I was cuddling with an evil wizard all night," she said in a playful tone. He laughed again and let her go.

"You have a point, I'll see you later."

"Ok, bye," she planted a soft kiss on his cheek and pivoted on her heel. After a few steps she turned and waved goodbye. She started jogging away, her hair bouncing with her steps as she faded into the darkness. Duman headed for home, thinking about how he would be able to hide this.

"_I'm not letting them be aware of my return just yet. They ARE my brothers, but they've lived without me for a month. I'm sure they can go a few more days," _he smirked. He walked up the stairs to his home and disappeared right on the front steps.


	2. Dark Clothes, Darker Hearts

When Roxy walked into her house, her dad was right inside the door. He had his arms crossed and a "you're so busted" look on his face. She shrunk into herself, wanting to disappear.

"Where have you been all night? I was worried about you! It's already 11:00 and you know your curfew is nine. I demand an explanation!"

"I was out," she said vaguely.

"Out doing WHAT?"

"I was hanging with the Winx," this was not a total lie.

"I'm not so sure I like those new friends of yours, something isn't right about them, I'm afraid it will get dangerous if you hang out with them. They are older than you after all. What if they get you doing something you regret?"

"They're completely fine, and I'm totally safe around them," another half-truth.

"They aren't associated with any _undesirables_?"

"Of course not," this was a lie. Roxy's dad stroked an imaginary beard and stared at the ceiling.

"Alright, but go to bed. And NEVER scare me like that again," he smiled at his daughter.

"Ok, I won't," she ran up the steps and shut her bedroom door. Rick rubbed his forehead and laughed, he had such a troublesome daughter. When Roxy got up to her room, she immediately changed into a camisole and shorts. She lied down on her bed and stared at the ceiling, a smile coming to her face. She was lost in thought about her new boyfriend, and speak of the devil…

"_How's my favorite fairy?" _he asked.

"_Good, how about you?"_

"_Better now that I'm talking to you."_

"_Aww, how sweet."_

"_But of course. I just wanted to say goodnight before I went to bed. This is my first night back and I'm beat."_

"_Then get some rest, we can always talk in the morning."_

"_And the afternoon and the evening…" _Roxy laughed, she loved his sense of humor.

"_Yes, then too. I should come over tomorrow."_

"_That's an excellent idea, princess, and my heart will long for the minute we meet again."_

"_You're so sweet, I can't wait!"_

"_I hate to cut the conversation short, but I'm really tired."_

"_Alright, I'll see you tomorrow."_

"_Until next time, Love," _and with that, Duman went silent. Roxy turned to face the wall next to her bed and smiled. She went to sleep dreaming of her prince.

The next morning, Roxy woke up and thought about last night. Was it all a dream? Was she really in a relationship with Duman? Had she been knocked out in the fight with the remaining wizards? Something was on her neck, it was a necklace. She picked it up and looked at it; it was the house key Duman gave her. She closed her hand on it, knowing that this was no dream. She hopped out of bed and started began to change. She had just finished brushing her hair when her phone rang. It was Bloom.

"Hello?"

"Hey Roxy! What's up?"

"Nothing much," Roxy would never willingly tell the girls what was going on. "How about you?"

"We're all good, want to come over?"

"Why not?" she said, she was still planning on visiting Duman later.

"Great! Come on over to the Love and Pet."

"Ok, see you soon."

"Bye!" Bloom hung up the phone first. For some reason, Roxy didn't really want to go see her friends. All she wanted to do was hang out with Duman, and they couldn't exactly do that with the Winx around. She sighed and started walking. As she was going down the street, that familiar voice popped into her head again.

"_Morning, beautiful,"_ Duman said.

"_Morning, did you get some sleep?"_

"_I sure did, and I feel a hundred times better."_

"_That's good. I can't wait to see you!"_

"_Same, when can you come over?"_

"_Well, the girls asked me to come over, so I'm heading over there right now."_

"_Busy busy, I just crawled out of bed."_

"_Of course."_

"_Can you blame me?" _

"_No," _Roxy said. By now, she was walking up to the pet shop. "_Hey, I have to go but I'll see you soon, ok?"_

"_Alright, I'll see you later beautiful."_

"_Bye." _When she walked in, all of the girls were happy to see her.

"Hey Roxy!" Stella exclaimed as she ran up and hugged her friend. "What's up?!"

"Nothing much, you?" Roxy said in a less-than-enthusiastic tone.

"We were planning on going over to the music bar, wanna come?" Aisha asked. Roxy hesitated before answering.

"Sure," she said. _"What other choice do I have, stay here?" _When they walked in, they were greeted by the specialists. They all hugged their girlfriends while Roxy just stood there. She longed to see Duman; he was all she could think about. The girls noticed her sad face, and they mistook it for something else.

"Don't worry Roxy; we'll get you a specialist boyfriend when you come to Alfea. There're lots of cuties to choose from," Stella said with a wink.

"We're here for you, Sweetie," Flora added.

"Thanks," Roxy said; however unnecessary their support was. She found their bubbly personalities irritating for some reason; they always acted like nothing has ever gone wrong for them. _"I guess that's just the royal state of mind,"_ she thought to herself. She knew all about her friends' history and social status. The girls were all the crowned princesses of different kingdoms, Nabu was the only child of the two richest and most influential people on Aisha's planet besides her own kin, and Sky was the king of another planet all together. She'd heard the stories countless times from Stella, the honorary Fairy of Gossip and Bragging. Though she would never admit it, Roxy was jealous of them all. It was every Earth girl's dream to become royalty one day, and she had friends who were born into it. They stayed at the Frutti Music bar for about three hours; it was 12:30 p.m. when they left. As they were walking across a vacant lot, they felt the overwhelming sensation of dark magic behind them. Their hearts dropped and they began to get scared.

"Well, look who it is, ready for a rematch, Winx?" Ogron said, his voice seething with hatred. The girls turned around and tried to put on brave faces. Bloom wasn't letting the wizards know she was scared, and she looked as confident as ever. The others, however, had trouble masking their fear. The wizards were easily beating them lately, it wasn't even close to an equal fight and everyone knew it. Anagan and Gantlos were floating next to Ogron, growling at the trembling fairies. Anagan's blood red eyes burned like fire, while Gantlos' silver eyes were as cold as ever. Each hated the wretched pixies with every fiber of his being.

"How many times are we going to let them get away, Ogron? Can't we just destroy them once and for all?" Gantlos growled.

"We could, but its way more fun to get them close to defeat over and over and see them weaken with every encounter, wouldn't you agree?"

"True," Anagan said. He wasn't as crazy with anger as his older brothers. He never got too mad. It's true that he missed Duman with all his heart, but anger made it harder for him to think things out. It also made it so he didn't realize how much fun he had knocking fairies around, fairies that weren't Flora. He would never attack her, except for the time he turned her own magic back on her. Without warning, Gantlos sent the not-yet-transformed Winx flying into a wall. This earned him some tut-tut-tut noises from Ogron.

"Now now, Gantlos, that wasn't very nice. They don't even have their wings out yet, where's the fun in defeating them when they're helpless?"

"Whatever. They deserve all the pain we can give them," he snarled. The girls stood up with shaking legs and pleading eyes, but the wizards had no sympathy for them. They transformed and flew away to hide.

Duman was taking a walk around Gardenia disguised as a teenage boy to prevent anyone recognizing him. He had black hair in a Goth like style, half of it covering his right eye and all of it coming down into spikes. His once glittering gold eyes were turned to emerald green, he wore black eye shadow around his eyes that dropped down into his cheeks and his skin was even paler. Both of his ears were pierced, and his earrings were now Gothic crosses. The left one had a silver chain going up to his cartilage piercing. He wore a black t-shirt with the grim reaper on the front, black skinny jeans with holes, fingerless biker gloves and lucky thirteen Osiris shoes. He began to get an excruciating headache and ducked into a narrow alleyway. He was holding his head between his hands and leaned against a wall. He squeezed his eyes shut and sunk down to the ground, wishing it would just go away. Then, recognition crept into his head. This was no ordinary headache. Something was wrong. Roxy. Roxy was in trouble. As soon as he realized this, the pain was gone. He stood up, trying to remain calm. He knew that his brothers were attacking her, and they could finish her off easily. He couldn't bear to hurt them, or to let her them hurt her. Now, Duman had a choice to make. Should he go save her and jeopardize their chance at being together, or should he leave her and hope her friends could pull through once more?


	3. Saving Grace

The girls hid behind an abandoned warehouse, racking their brains to think of what they should do. Roxy knew that they would go for her first, and the others did, too. The wizards knew perfectly well where they were, they aren't idiots. They decided to let them wallow in fear a little longer. After a few minutes, they flew around to the Winx and chased them out into the open.

"Face it, little fairies, you'll never beat us. It just won't happen. You may as well surrender your power now," Ogron said victoriously. Roxy was backed up against a wall and the wizards saw this as the perfect time to tear up some wings. They flew towards her at top speed and she braced for impact.

"Roxy, NO!" Bloom shouted, unable to help her friend. When they were merely a few feet away from her, there was a crash between the wizards and Roxy that sent them flying back. Roxy slowly opened her eyes while the other girls gaped at the scene before them. A large mass that looked like a pile of black feathers sat in the crater it made on impact with the ground. The wizards were confused as well, what had just hit them? The feathers opened in to two large, beautiful black angel wings, and there was a boy in between, the wings belonged to him. The boy was dressed in all black. He stood up with his head still bowed. When he lifted it, two piercing emerald eyes glared at the wizards. Roxy was terrified, and he could sense this. He turned back to her and his eyes went from green to snickered and winked at her, and she was relieved. It was Duman. He turned his eyes back to green and looked at the wizards.

"Don't you dare touch her," he growled. The wizards were still confused.

"Who's asking?" Anagan asked sarcastically. The boy smirked at them. Roxy giggled, no one had any clue that this was Duman; he looked and sounded nothing like himself.

"Me."

"That's nice little boy, now what are you doing here," Gantlos asked, treating him like a young child.

"You can think of me as a guardian angel. I'm so sorry to tell you, but I will never let you hurt Roxy. Got it, Gantlos?" Gantlos raised an eyebrow, wondering how this kid knew his name. "Oh yeah, I've done my research. The Wizards of the Black Circle, huh? You don't seem so tough." Now, the boy looked around, pretending to be confused. "By the way, I thought you had four members," he said mockingly. The wizards began to growl at him, knowing what he was going to say next. Anagan ran towards him, but he didn't let him get very close. "Darkened faith!" A ball of electricity flew out from his hands and knocked the wizards back even more. "That's right," he snapped his fingers, still mocking them. "Where's that other guy, Duman?" The Winx were shocked.

"What is he DOING?!" Tecna hissed. No one had spoken of him since he was gone, so as not to make the wizards angrier. They were pissed and sped at him, hell-bent on making him pay. The boy picked up Roxy bridal style and dodged them, moving even faster than Anagan. They were stunned, how did he get away so quickly? He let Roxy fly by herself and went back down to face his brothers. He knew that they were only attacking him because he didn't look like himself, but it still hurt that they were trying to kill him.

"Oh, I struck a nerve there, didn't I? I wonder why." Gantlos slammed his foot on the ground, sending a devastating seismic wave towards Duman. There was dirt in the air from this, and no one could see. When it cleared, everyone looked to see what had become of the heroic angel. The Winx were worried and Roxy thought he was dead; tears beginning to form in her eyes. She almost called out his name, but she knew she couldn't. The wizards looked triumphant as always, but without good reason. The angel was fine. He had wrapped himself in his wings. He opened them and stood revealing that he was unharmed, but his once glossy black feathers were covered in dust. "Oh, now look what you did, I'm all dirty," he said in mock disappointment. He flapped his wings a few times, sending the dirt flying. "Much better," he said as he wiped his shoulder off. "Is that all you got?"

"Quiet!" Ogron roared. He sent a ball of flames flying towards Duman, but he just deflected it.

"Death Veil," he shouted. The magic bounced off of an energy shield, right into Ogron's chest. He decided to kick them while they were down. "Grave call," he said darkly as he cupped his hand up next to his mouth and began to wail. Coming from his mouth were luminescent rings of magic that ricocheted off of the surroundings and into the earth. His howl echoed as the wind picked up, and the sky was engulfed in black clouds. Ghosts and spectres arose from the ground, terrifying the girls. They began to shriek and moan and dance around the wizards who were now feeling unbearable pain, the pain that the ghosts felt as they died. They yelled in anguish, not knowing what else to do. Duman couldn't bear to hurt his beloved family any longer and stopped howling. The wraiths receded into the ground and the sky cleared. Everything was as it was before the spell. The wizards sank to their knees, breathing hard and sweating. "Now, are you done, or do you want more?" They stood and snarled at him. "Come on, gimme all you got," he taunted them. They calmed down after this.

"Fall back," Ogron said with venom in his voice. They each vanished in a puff of black smoke. Roxy flew back down to the ground as the girls all returned to their normal forms.

"Thanks Duman," she said sarcastically. Duman laughed about her tone.

"Oh my, however did you find out?"

"Who else has gold eyes?"

"Not this guy, that's for sure," they both laughed as the Winx ran up to them.

"Roxy, are you ok?" Musa asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks to him."

"Thank you so much for saving her," Flora said.

"Yeah, I don't know what we would do without her," Tecna added.

"No problem, I'm happy to help," he said.

"So what's your name?" Musa asked.

"I'm Ryder, nice to meet you," he lied.

"So," Stella said. "What exactly are you?" Bloom hit her on the arm with an are-you-nuts expression on her face. "OW!" "Ryder" only laughed at their cluelessness.

"But seriously, are you an angel or what?" Aisha asked.

"Actually, I'm a fallen angel," he said. The girls were very confused about this.

"What is that?" Bloom asked.

"Well, it's basically an angel who prefers darkness over light, like a wizard. Normal angels always have to resort to pacifistic ways of handling problems while fallen angels can use any means necessary. Our job is to fight against evil, the job of angels is to help unfortunate children and reward those who do good deeds. Get the idea?"

"Yeah, I guess," Tecna said. "That explains your spells."

"Exactly, and don't worry. I'm not nearly as mean as you think I am," he said.

"So how'd you know Roxy needed help?"

"I just had a feeling."

"Cool, so are you going to come every time she needs you?" Stella asked.

"Of course. The thing is, you wouldn't need me if that other guy wasn't dead. So if they find a spell to bring him back, I won't be around anymore."

"Oh, that stinks. But if he DID come back, wouldn't we need your help to beat them?" Stella suggested in a devious manner. The angel thought for a minute.

"I guess so, but they wouldn't be as mad so they wouldn't be as hard to beat."

"Well it's a good thing he won't be back," Flora said happily. Duman felt a twinge of anger inside, but it wasn't visible.

"Right," he said. He looked up at the sky. "It's getting late, I should probably go," his wings withdrew into his back, causing the girls to go slack-jawed. "I'll see you later," he said. He turned and walked to the road as if he was just a normal human.

"Wow, his spells were amazing," Musa said. "Creepy, but still amazing."

"What a HUNK!" Stella squealed. "Roxy, I think he had his eye on you," she winked at her friend who was staring at the gate he left from. "Maybe he can be your boyfriend."

"Maybe," she replied. Oh, her clueless friends.


	4. Secrets Make Lies, Lies Make Pain

"Those damned fairies!" Gantlos said as he punched a wall in their sewer, causing the ground to shake.

"Peace with you, Gantlos. Losing our heads will nay help us," Ogron said in an old-timey fashion. Gantlos slumped to the ground and grumbled something under his breath. Anagan was sitting on a pipe that ran from wall to wall, thinking to himself. His brothers noticed and wondered what was up.

"Why are you just sitting up there? C'mon, we're about to plan the next attack," Gantlos said, still angry. Anagan responded without moving his gaze from the ceiling.

"That angel…" he thought aloud. Ogron and Gantlos looked at each other.

"That brat? What about him?" Ogron asked.

"Who do you think it was?"

"Just some kid, who else?"

"He was strong enough to take us on without even breaking a sweat. If he is just some kid, he's pretty impressive. He was almost as strong as Duman…" He trailed off, remembering all those times they would spar together to strengthen their powers. He shook his head, wishing he could just forget everything. Ogron and Gantlos both looked at the ground, missing him terribly. "Who is as powerful as us?"

"Him, obviously," Gantlos replied. "And we can't get near the Earth fairy with him on the job. What are we going to do about that?" Ogron thought for a minute but came up with nothing.

"I have no idea. If he uses that spell on us we're helpless," he said. "Duman would probably be able to figure it out." They sat in silence, not looking at each other. Anagan decided that enough was enough when it came to mourning; it was making them all feel horrible. They weren't able to save him; he sacrificed himself to save them and they should be proud to have been such good friends with him. Something must be done to set this right.

"Alright, listen. I know we all miss him but wallowing in sadness is doing nothing for our cause. Think about it, would he really want us sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves? Of course not, he would want us to continue our mission and our mission is to rip off that fairy's wings. This angel is nothing but a minor setback, we'll get rid of him, steal that brat's magic and get rid of those wretched Winx once and for all, to avenge his death." They both looked up at him, the sadness beginning to melt away from their faces.

"Well, I'm glad at least one of us came to our senses. You're right, it's time to take action," Ogron said, a demonic smile creeping across his face. "And I have just the way to do it." They were too caught up in their maniacal laughing to notice a set of golden eyes, watching their every move, hearing their every word. They also didn't notice them turn away in fear.

* * *

After the fight with the wizards and the mystery angel, the Winx went to their home to unwind. Musa was playing her guitar, Tecna was typing, Flora was watering her plants, Stella was painting her nails, Aisha was dancing and Bloom was drawing. Roxy was lying on the couch with her hands folded behind her head, staring at the ceiling. She was thinking of how brave Duman was, jeopardizing their secret and his friendships to save her life. Then she remembered their arrangement. She shot up into a sitting position, catching the attention of the others.

"I think I'm going to visit my friend," she said. She started towards the door. Outside, the once calm breeze had turned into a fierce gale announcing the upcoming hurricane. It began to rain, causing those on the streets to seek immediate shelter.

"Really, who?" Bloom asked. "Want us to take you?"

"That would be great, thanks." She dodged the first question.

"Of course," Stella said. "Where to?" Roxy thought for a second. She remembered Duman telling her his address.

"11847 Arbor Street."

"No problem," Flora said. With a snap of her fingers, they were all on the sidewalk in front of Roxy's destination.

"Thanks," Roxy said as she ran up to the door. She took the key off of her neck, unlocked the door and disappeared inside.

"Well, that was illogical," Tecna said. "She didn't even say goodbye, and why would her friend just give her a key?"

"Eh, who knows? Let's just go home, it's freezing," Aisha said, taking everyone home.

* * *

Inside Duman's house, Roxy was looking around the foyer and into the next rooms. Surprisingly, this place was very modern. It was dark except for a lit fireplace in his living room. Duman was nowhere to be found.

"Hey, Duman? It's me," she called. No answer. She walked into the living room where the only life was that of the flickering flame. He wouldn't just leave it lit while he was out, would he? "Hey, are you here?" Still nothing. Then, she heard the quiet click of a door being cautiously opened and shut. Slow footsteps made their way towards her. She was afraid someone had come in unannounced. A figure approached in the darkness as her heart started to beat faster. Duman had a suspicious expression as he stepped into the light, but it vanished when he saw Roxy standing in the middle of the room with a scared face. He started to laugh as her expression turned to relief. "Oh good, it's you," she said with a sigh. "I thought someone broke in."

"No worries, how long have you been here, I would have come earlier," he said.

"Only a few minutes," she replied. "Where've you been?"

"Just on a walk when it started raining," he replied. She raised an eyebrow at him, knowing something was up.

"On a walk where?"

"… Places…"

"Places where," she asked again. He sighed.

"I went to see what the others were doing," he said. Now she looked curious.

"So they know you're back?"

"No, I just watched them. Nothing new, really," he said, not wanting to worry her. "God, I'm soaked." He took his shirt off, revealing his chiseled muscles. Under his skirt he wore loose sweatpants that draped over his hips. He kicked his shoes into a corner by the door, finally able to get comfortable. "Better," he noticed her slightly pink cheeks and decided to give her more to blush about. Before she had time to object, he slid over to her and pulled her into a loving embrace, his arms around her waist, her hands and face on his chest. Now her cheeks were scarlet with embarrassment; she wasn't used to seeing guys without shirts on, especially guys like Duman. "Problem, Love?" He said jokingly.

"No, not at all," she said, her eyes wide. He pulled away and held both of her hands.

"Good," he said. "So, what do you want to do?" Roxy had to think for a minute about this one.

"Do you have any movies?"

"Only horror," he said. OF COURSE he would only have horror movies.

"Well, I would usually want to go outside, but we can watch one," she said. She hated horror movies, but what else could they do? They went into his comfy-looking living room; his house was far bigger than most townhouses. With a snap of his fingers, he put a DVD in and made popcorn for her. "Hey, thanks!" She put a few pieces in her mouth. "Want some?" He shook his head.

"No thanks, I'm not that hungry," he said. "Maybe later."

"Ok," she said. They sat on the couch while Texas Chainsaw Massacre started playing. It started halfway through the movie when some woman was wailing in pain after being dismembered while Leather Face was ripping the skin off of her disconnected arm. Roxy screamed and jumped ten feet in the air. Duman giggled at her, she was insanely jumpy today. He stopped the popcorn from hitting the floor and put the bowl on the coffee table. He wrapped his arms around her to try to keep her from shaking, able to hear her palpitating heart.

"Hey, calm down, it's just a movie," he said in a loving voice. She snuggled into him, she REALLY hated horror movies. "If you don't want to watch it, we don't have to."

"N-no, it's ok," she said through chattering teeth.

"You're sure," he asked, raising an eyebrow. She shook her head yes, and he played it from the beginning. He began to untangle her from his arms, but she held on tight.

"No," she said, sounding a bit desperate. "I mean, please don't let go." He laughed at her and put his arm around her shoulder. She curled her legs up, leaned her head on his shoulder and nuzzled into him.

"Don't worry Roxy," he said, placing his head on hers. At any scary part, she squeezed her eyes shut and buried her face in his shirtless chest. He started to stroke her arm, trying to make her feel better. They sat wordless for about twenty minutes when they both fell asleep, still intertwined in each other.

* * *

It was 7:00 before the Winx began to get worried about Roxy. It was raining much harder and the full force of the storm hadn't even come yet.

"Do you think she's ok?" Flora asked, a natural worrier.

"Of course, she's probably home," Musa said.

"You know, I've never met that friend of hers," Tecna said. She didn't trust whoever it was.

"Well, you've never met some of my Earth friends," Bloom said. "I'm sure it's no big deal."

"If you say so." They went on with their usual business when a phone call rang through the pet shop.

"This is Love and Pet, my name's Stella. How may I help you?" Stella asked, sitting on the counter with a pen and notepad.

"Hi, Stella. It's Rick, Roxy's dad."

"Oh, hi," she answered as she put her stuff down. "Everything ok?"

"Not really, Roxy isn't home yet and she said she would be back at 4:00. She isn't answering her phone and I'm getting worried. Is she with you all?" Stella looked at the girls with a worried face.

"No, she went to her friend's house, she had a key and everything," she said slowly.

"She never hangs out with anyone but her animals, she hasn't even had a normal friend since kindergarten," he said skeptically. Stella had it on speaker, and Tecna was doing exaggerated "I told you so" motions.

"Well, we'll call her again and get back to you, gotta go, bye," she hung up fast.

"Well look who was right again," Tecna said pointing at herself. "This girl!"

"Ok, ok, you were right, but we have to call her, what if something's wrong?" Musa said. Flora pulled out her cell and dialed the number.

Duman awoke to the annoying sound of a cell phone ringing. The movie was over and was on the main menu screen. He turned it off and began to get up, but Roxy was still asleep on his shoulder, and he didn't have the heart to disturb her. He picked up her phone and answered. He must have gotten a cold from being outside in the rain, his voice was growly.

"Hello?"

"Uh, hi there," Flora sounded startled that a man answered. "I was under the impression that this was Roxy's phone, who exactly am I speaking to?" she said with sass. Duman was surprised that it was the Winx, and he woke up real fast. He made his voice even more different. A simple task, given the power he had.

"Roxy is busy. I'm her friend's father," he lied, knowing what she told her friends.

"Ok, what is her friend's name?" Tecna took the phone and snapped.

"Marissa," he snapped back. "Why do you call?"

"She was expected back home hours ago, we're coming to get her," Tecna snarled.

"Have it your way," he said. He hung up without giving them a chance to reply. "Roxy, wake up," he said softly as he lightly shook her shoulder. She woke up slowly.

"Hey, what time is it?"

"7:00, we fell asleep. Apparently, your dad got worried and had the Winx call you. I pretended to be your friend "Marissa's" father. They're coming over to get you," she went from groggy to wide awake.

"Crap," she said, conjuring a brush and smoothing it through her matted hair. Duman transformed into another man. "Good idea, what if they ask to see Marissa?" He tapped his chin the way he had seen Anagan doing it and snapped his fingers.

"Got it," he said. With a wave of his hand, a puff of smoke appeared in the room. A girl was in the middle, she had curly black hair that went to her mid back, purple eyes and tan skin. She wore a white tank top, jean shorts and black gladiator shoes.

"Whoa," Roxy said, standing in front of her.

"Hey Rox, what's up?" the girl said.

"How did you do that?" she asked Duman.

"It's called magic training. Trust me; I'm sure the Winx can do that, too." They heard a ring at the door and Duman instructed the two girls to go upstairs. He answered the door, still looking way older than he actually was. He himself was only 20, but he looked 45. "Hello?" he growled.

"Hi," Stella said with a hateful look on her face. All of the Winx had their arms crossed and glared at him. He returned the favor by straightening his back, showing his frightening 6'10'' frame. The girls all turned pale. "W-we're her to pick up Roxy," she said, trying to seem unafraid.

"Of course you are," he said. He turned towards the stairs and yelled. "Roxy, Marissa, some girls are here asking for you." They ran down the stairs and towards the door. Roxy acted surprised to see them.

"Oh, hey girls, what are you doing here?" They all stared at her friend, never having seen her before.

"Roxy, your dad has been calling you left and right, why haven't you answered?"

"Oh, Marissa and I went for a walk in the rain, I asked her dad to keep an eye on my phone," she lied, hoping they would believe her.

"But you're not wet," Tecna said harshly. Now, Marissa spoke.

"Well, duh, Roxy dried us off. I thought you were those all-knowing Winx she's been telling me about, but you didn't figure that out?" she said cattily with a flip of her hair. The Winx glared at her, deciding they didn't like her.

"Whatever, how did she dry you off?" Aisha asked.

"She's a fairy. How dumb can you get," she said while laughing.

"Roxy, you told her?" Bloom scolded. Roxy raised an eyebrow at her.

"Well, she IS a fairy, too, after all." The girls' jaws dropped while Marissa had one of those looks that suggested that she was better than them.

"Really?"

"That's right," she said in a singsong voice. "The fairy of wind to be exact, my father and I hail from Atbara. We came to Earth to study the people," she said. The Winx regained their royal composure.

"That's very nice. Now, Roxy, we need to take you home," Musa said.

"Fine," she said disappointedly. She hopped out the door.

"Later, Roxy-Rox," Marissa said. "Come over tomorrow."

"Ok." She waved as Duman closed the door. She knew that he was controlling the girl and her speech, so he was technically the one who invited her over. Roxy smiled knowing it wouldn't be long until they saw each other again.

"Why didn't you tell us who this friend was?" Aisha asked. "We would have understood," they were walking down the street through the wind and rain, not risking sharing their secret with Rick.

"Yeah right," she said, irritated that her dad doesn't trust her. The girls all took that comment like a slap to the face.

"Roxy, how could you say that?" Musa asked.

"What do you mean 'yeah right'?" Stella blocked her path as the others joined her. Roxy just looked at them like they each had three heads.

"Um, duh, you wouldn't get it," she said like it should be obvious. She had no idea they would take it so hard. No one on Earth would have cared.

"Why do you think that?" Flora was halfway between concerned and angered.

"I can't believe it, we have saved your butt a thousand times from those wizards, we taught you how to use your magic that you WOULDN'T know about if it wasn't for us and we've been nothing but nice to you with all these changes going on in your life. HOW could you treat us like this?!" Tecna shouted. Roxy clenched her fists and looked at the ground.

"You just wouldn't understand!" she yelled as she broke through the barrier they made and ran towards her house. The girls watched her form disappear into the fog and regretted getting angry with her. Maybe she really didn't think they would be ok with her having a friend who seemed more like a witch than a fairy. What if she was more understanding of Roxy's situation? They all looked at each other with qualms about how they treated her and began to chase her.

"Roxy, wait!" Bloom yelled. They ran through puddles of mud and rain, up and down hills, in and out of alleyways with the occasional stop to rub their ankles which were blaring from their impromptu workout in heels. Finally, they made it to her house where they saw the long pink hair disappear into the door that closed with a thud. They ran up to the door and knocked, trying to seem like nothing was wrong. Rick answered with a concerned look on his face.

"Do any of you have an explanation of why Roxy just ran in fuming and refusing to talk to me?"

"Well, she was kinda mad that we didn't let her stay with her friend," Stella said. Rick rubbed his forehead, wondering what he was going to do with her. She was so much more defiant since she had met these girls.

"I'll talk to her in the morning, maybe she'll have cooled off by then."

"Ok, we'll get out of your hair," Musa said as they did an about-face and ran back towards the shop. Rick shut the door and sat on the couch, resting his head on his hand and tapping his fingers on his knee.

Roxy had just run into her house, trying to escape her friends. She knew that they only meant to help her, but they could be annoying and people of their dimension were obviously pretty sensitive. Her dad tried to ask her something, but she just rushed past him and up the stairs to her room. She slammed the door behind her and slouched against it. She sunk to the ground and held her face in her hands, crying about her situation. The Winx probably hated her, her dad was probably pissed, and what if those idiot wizards attacked while she was alone, what would she do then?


	5. Mended Bonds and Stories to Tell

The next morning, Roxy awoke with her cheeks stained by the makeup that had run down her face from the tears. She went to the bathroom and cleaned it all off, pushing those memories out of her head. She tried to think about her short time with Duman. Even though she hated horror movies, she did like just being with him. He was very good at comforting her, he made her feel whole. However, she could sense that he could never be whole without Ogron, Gantlos and Anagan. They provided him with something that she knew she could never give him. They were his brothers, his family. They had been with him through everything. Roxy stopped and looked in the mirror to think. Now that she thought about it, she had no clue how they had met each other, or if they were actually blood brothers. She really didn't know much about him or his past. She didn't know who his real parents were, where he grew up, any old friends he had. Instead of being sad, she made it a point to ask him. She put on her clothes and headed downstairs for breakfast. At the base of the stairway, her Father was waiting for her, and he seemed concerned. She slowed her pace and started to tip toe down, her face awash with suspicion.

"What's up, Dad?" She asked slowly.

"Hey, Roxy, can you come sit with me?" He asked slowly, he had the air of someone who was going to break the news of a deceased family member. He led her into the kitchen and sat her down at the table. He walked over to the counter and picked up a plate of hot pancakes already dressed with butter and syrup and brought it over to her. "I made you chocolate chip pancakes, you favorite," he said as he set it down in front of her. She still looked suspicious.

"What is this all about, Dad?" she wanted to get right to the point so she could go see Duman.

"The Winx told me that you were mad about not being able to stay with your friend," he said. They sat in silence for what felt like an eternity, he rested his head on his folded hands, she was playing with her food and took the occasional bite. The tension in the room was almost tangible. "Why did you never tell me about her?" Roxy looked up at the ceiling, trying to think up a good lie. She had been doing that a lot lately. But hey, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

"Because, I didn't know if you approve of me being friends with her, she is a bit… rude? I don't know the right word. Anyways, you just wouldn't like her."

"Well, I still would have let you see her," he said, wishing she trusted him more. "You can see her all you want, just promise me that you'll tell me about stuff, ok?"

"Ok, Dad, I will," she said. She sort of meant it, but she just wanted to still have a good relationship with him. She got up and went to hug him, and he was happy that he had his daughter back. "Can I go see her now?" Her dad went over to the window, where it was still raining, but not nearly as hard.

"Alright, but take a jacket." Her face lit up as she hugged him again.

"You're the best! See you later," she ran to the door and picked up an athletic sweatshirt.

"Be back before 9:00!" She stuck a thumb up to him and ran out the door. As she walked down the street, his voice popped into her head.

"_How's my princess this morning?" _A smile began to spread across her face.

"_I'm good, mind if I come over?"_

"_Of course, anytime you want."_

"_Ok, I'm heading over now."_

"_Alright, I'll be waiting." _

"_See you then," _She was walking down the street where Love and Pet stood, it was kind of hard to avoid. As she was walking up to it she could see in the window, the girls saw her walking towards the place and were watching her with hopeful expressions. When she walked past, they all looked sad. She would have stopped, but she had places to be. She wound the corners that led to his street, walked up the steps and disappeared inside.

* * *

This cycle continued for weeks, her dad made her breakfast, she left, walked past the shop and went to Duman's house where they talked and talked as long as they could, and to save time Duman teleported her to an alley near her house. One day, however, this changed. One day, Roxy decided to mend the bond she had severed with the Winx Club. She stopped in front of the shop, the eyes of her friends watching her intently. She turned and opened the door, not bothering to stop and ask permission for entry.

"Hey, girls," she smiled at them, causing their faces to brighten.

"Roxy!" They all squealed. They ran up and pulled her into a big group hug. They hadn't talked to her since they met Marissa.

"We missed you so much!" Flora said.

"I missed you guys too. I'm so sorry I got so mad," she was sincere. They all pulled away and stood in a circle.

"Friends again?" Bloom asked. Roxy smiled at them.

"Friends." They all cheered, they group was back together. Roxy stayed and talked with them for a few minutes before she decided to leave. At first they objected, but she was a girl on a mission. "I'll see you guys soon, don't worry." She walked over to the door and waved at them, then sprinted out into the rain. It hadn't stopped even once. The Winx were a bit upset that she didn't stay longer, but they were happy that she at least talked to them. This day was different for more than one reason. Roxy still hadn't asked Duman about his past. She still knew nothing about him. She walked in on him reading on the couch, Gantlos had gotten him interested in reading; he hated it before he met him. "Hey." He looked up with a start, and seemed pleased that it was her. He was wearing the same sweatpants, but he had a t-shirt on this time.

"Hey, I was wondering when you would get here," he floated the book over to the shelf that was full of them.

"I got side tracked," she said as she sat down next to him.

"Went to see the Winx?" he knew her so well.

"Yeah…" she said, looking at the ground. For some reason she felt ashamed.

"Good," he said. She looked at him, quite obviously confused. "It's good to have friends who care about you." This got Roxy thinking, and it gave her the perfect chance to start the conversation she was thinking about.

"Speaking of friends," she said, causing him to become suspicious. "How did you meet the other wizards? Like, you act like brothers, but are you?" He laughed slightly as he ran his hand through his Mohawk.

"That's quite the story, what made you think about that?"

"I just wanted to know," she said. "Will you tell me?" He looked at the ceiling as though he was deciding whether or not he should.

"Alright, I will," he said as though he was tired. Roxy turned to face him, her big purple eyes boring into his, as though trying to see how it all happened. He began to tell her the tale of how they met. The picture he painted with his words was so vivid that Roxy was almost drawn into the flashback with him.

* * *

**Hey guys! Hope you like the story so far! This is a response to Artica. She wants me to not make the Winx as mean. Don't worry, they won't be like that anymore, it just seems more realistic and human that they aren't perfect 100% of the time. The next chapter is a lot longer. just so you know.**


	6. Banished Memories

**It was a new school year at the White Thorne Academy for Prosperous Young Men, a prestigious boarding school hidden away in a lightly inhabited region of America. Most of the students were inside or at the door greeting their old friends. A boy with red hair was walking up the heavily gardened path to the school, followed closely by his parents. He was slouching down so as to hide his height, he was pretty tall for his age, he got it from his dad. When he slouched, he didn't look nearly as big. He had a backpack slung over his right shoulder and a large duffel bag in his left hand. He wore a slouchy sweatshirt, baggy torn jeans and skater shoes. The path was made of cobblestone, not wide enough for cars. It was lined with bushes of flowers of all kinds. The trees created a canopy that allowed minimal sunlight in. It was a human's paradise, and a human's only school, but this red haired boy hid a secret. Was he human? No, of course not. People thought that talking to his race was taboo, so they segregated them. He thought he was the only one here, and that he should be careful of his secret. His father had instilled this into him since he could understand words. Oh, how his father hated him. His mother, however, was a different story. She loved him with all her heart.**

"**Ogron, wait!" she yelled after him, he was trying exceptionally hard to get away from them. His father hung back. For all he cared, the kid could run to China.**

"**What do you want?" He said a bit harsh as he snapped his head around to look at her. She was in front of him, her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. His dad caught up right as the mom felt better.**

"**Aren't you going to say goodbye to us?" She asked. **

"**Why should you care? I heard you two talking!" He yelled at her. She was surprised and looked at her husband who simply shrugged his shoulders. "I know you just sent me here because you can't bear to have me in your house anymore. I heard it all," he turned to his father and lowered his voice. "Especially you! Wizards are hateful beings, huh? Whatever. You've hated me since I was born, did you think I didn't know or something? You never gave me a chance so I'm not giving you a chance to make up for it. Seem fair?" His mom had tears falling from her eyes. "You hate me because I'm not a paladin like you. I don't care anymore, never expect to get a letter from me and don't bother coming to visit," he said as he stormed off. The mother was now bawling her eyes out while the father with a stone cold heart tried to comfort her. **

"**Pay him no mind, my dear," he said. She looked up at him; her once beautiful face twisted into a look of anguish. Her only son hated her, a mother's worst nightmare. "Wizards are naturally hateful beings," he said darkly as he led her away from the school and his treacherous son. That was the last time the boy saw his parents. He didn't care. To this day he still doesn't care. As he walked up the courtyard, he caught the attention of a few of the prep school idiots he wished he didn't have to interact with. They were talking about him, he could tell, but he didn't know what they were saying.**

"**Hey, that's that guy who's transferring in this year," one said.**

"**What grade is he in?" another asked.**

"**9th, same as us," yet another said. **

"**Did you hear him yelling at his parents? Dang, how is he so loud?" Someone walked over and asked.**

"**I don't know, man." The first guy said. They weren't making fun of him and they had no intentions to. He seemed like a cool guy. The boy who seemed to be the leader of them all hadn't talked yet. He was watching the newcomer intently. Something was different about him, he could tell. He decided to talk to him as he came by. **

"**Hey, what's up?" he said as he put an elbow on Ogron's shoulder, stopping him. He looked up at this kid who stopped him, sizing him up. Yup, he could take him down easy. He already had magic training, wizards get it from age 5 to age 10. **

"**Nothing," Ogron said. His hair was hiding his beautiful blue eyes he got from his mother to the point where no one could really see them well. They looked like an endless crystal ocean and people easily fell in, drowning in his enchanting gaze. This made hypnosis spells ridiculously easy.**

"**Dude, I heard you having a shouting match with the 'rents, what was the problem?" He looked up at the school building.**

"**Eh, they sent me here because my dad hates me. Who knows why," he said, but he knew full well why. All the guys looked at each other, this kid truly belonged there.**

"**Don't let it get you down."**

"**I really don't care," he was referring to this dip shit on his shoulder and his advice, but they took it as not caring about his parents.**

"**That's the spirit, you should know something," he said as he poked his chest. He snapped his hand back; he hadn't anticipated how hard his muscles were. "No one here chooses to come; they only make these fancy boarding schools as big daycare centers for parents who want a break from their kids." Ogron looked at him with a bored face. He truly didn't care. He didn't want to be here. He knew everything that this school could teach him, he was smarter than most college graduates. He was FAR smarter than these pathetic dumbbells. **

"**Kay," he said as he began to walk away, but the leader stopped him again. Ogron was getting tired of this.**

"**As far as I'm concerned, you're a friend of ours, right guys?" Everyone agreed with him. Ogron didn't understand their simple human brains. How was he their friend if he didn't like them? "Name's Ricky, nice to meet you," leader boy said.**

"**Ogron," he said. "Nice to meet you." Everyone looked at him with curious faces.**

"**What a name," one guy said.**

"**You got a problem with it?" Ogron snapped his head around to face him. His hair came out of his eyes, showing their startling color.**

"**Nah, it's all good," Ricky said. "But dude, your eyes are crazy awesome."**

"**Thanks," Ogron said as he flipped his hair back into his face, obscuring them again.**

"**Just so you know, we're the most popular guys at this school," Ricky said, obviously proud of himself.**

"**Are you now?" Ogron was very unentertained.**

"**Right, so just stick with us and you'll get whatever you want from the little people, but a word of advice," He looked him in the eyes. "There are only three guys at this school that you gotta steer clear of." They led him into the building and through groups of 'little people' who all stopped and stared at the new guy who Ricky himself had taken a liking to.**

"**Wow, something must be great about that guy if he's friends with them," one said.**

"**Wish I was him," said another. They walked up one set of stairs and turned into a classroom where there were more students. **

"**Them," Ricky was pointing to three boys who were talking to no one. One had platinum blonde hair and silvery eyes; one had black hair, darker skin and red eyes; and the last had pink hair and golden eyes. He surprised Ogron the most, pink hair and gold eyes? Wow. "Total freaks."**

"**They look pretty normal to me," Ogron said, noticing something that these twits couldn't.**

"**They never talk to anyone, not even each other," one of the groupies said. **

"**Yeah, and they all have weird eyes," said another. **

"**You got a problem with weird eyes?" Ogron said.**

"**Well, blue is normal, yours are just brighter," that same guy said. "But theirs? That's just plain creepy." **

"**The oldest, Gantlos, he's the most normal. He's the Blondie, an eighth grader. Anagan, the guy with darker skin, he's in the same grade but is a few months younger," Ricky said. Gantlos was leaning back and reading while Anagan was resting his head on his left hand and drawing with his right. Then, they all got tense as they started to talk about the last one. "The youngest is completely freakish." Ogron looked at the boy with pink hair, he looked a lot younger. He had his feet up on the desk and was listening to music.**

"**How so?"**

"**Well, for starters, his bizarre hair and eyes," one said.**

"**Seriously, whenever he gets mad those things glow and he starts to growl," said another.**

"**Yeah, and we've heard the others talk, like in class and stuff, but that guy hasn't talked once since he came here three years ago. His name's Duman, he's in sixth grade." They all got quiet and crowded together for "safety". Ogron looked at them and sighed.**

"**What's wrong now?" He asked.**

"**There's been… **_**Rumors…**_**about him**_**," **_**Ricky said, sounding like one of those guys who tell horror stories for a living. Ogron turned towards him. What a teller of tales Ricky was, always ready to spread rumors.**

"**Rumors like what?" he asked, knowing it would be preposterous. Right as he said it, a crack of thunder rang through the shadowed halls of White Thorne. Everyone freaked out and started talking faster, except for those three guys and Ogron. "Well, what were the rumors?" The popular twats looked at him like he was insane for not being scared, but Ricky spoke anyway. And since when was there a thunderstorm?**

"**Well, there's a lot about the kid," He said as he put his arm on Ogron's shoulders, pulling him into a range where no one else could hear. "But there're two that stand out from all the rest." Pause for dramatic effect, though none was felt. Ricky looked left. Ricky looked right. He looked Ogron in the eyes. "They say he's a wizard, and get this," He got in even closer, too close for comfort. Ogron already thought that he was, but if people were suspicious then he, the eighth graders and Duman were all in danger. Ricky whispered the next words. "A **_**werewolf!**_**" Another crack of thunder, more scared pansy-boys. Now, it was different. Outside was as dark as night, and in the distance, there was a long howl echoing through the countryside. This scared everyone to the marrow, and they all huddled into their little groups like herded sheep. "Hear that? They say that's his dad, calling for his flesh and blood to return to him."Ogron watched them intently. Something was off about them, and he knew exactly what.**

"**I think I'm gonna go talk to them," he said. The others looked at him like he was nuts.**

"**Are you insane?! What if they hurt you or something, or Duman bites you and turns you into one of his were-slaves?!" Ricky asked. So now he had were-slaves. Ogron shrugged his shoulders and started walking.**

"**They won't," he said. He walked over to Gantlos first with the prep school twits following at a safe distance. "Hey, what's up?" he asked. Gantlos didn't move his gaze from his book, but he answered anyway.**

"**Nothing." He said, seeming like he didn't want to talk. Ogron pulled up a chair and sat. **

"**What're you reading," he asked. Gantlos closed the book and showed him the cover, still refusing to move his gaze from the exact spot where it was. The cover was a picture of two golden wolf eyes on its white coat and read "The Sight". "That's a good book, I've read it." Gantlos opened it back up to the page he was at and resumed reading.**

"**Have you now?" he said in the exact same tone. It was hard for him to believe that this guy read the book if he went to this school.**

"**Yup, you'll have to tell me what you think of the ending some time," Ogron said. Gantlos didn't answer and Ogron moved on to Anagan. Gantlos was amazed, but he would never show it. This guy was the first who ever tried to actually talk to them. Ogron sat next to Anagan and he didn't react. He was drawing what looked to be an imperial tiger that they used to keep in India. It had a jeweled head piece and neck piece. "That's really good," he said. Anagan looked up at him for a few seconds before he got back to his drawing.**

"**Thanks," he said. He had begun to shade when he paused and started again. "Why are you talking to us, anyway?"**

"**Because no one else is," Ogron said. This earned him a grunt from Anagan.**

"**What a laugh," he said. "Of course no one talks to us, its social suicide. To be honest, I kind of like not talking to these idiots, I really don't need to."**

"**Trust me, I totally get it," Ogron said through his teeth as he stood up. "You should show me when you finish it."**

"**Sure thing." Now, Ogron went to the one who interested him most. Duman was still listening to music as Ogron walked over to him. He saw something moving under his hair, it was his ears. They were pointy, like a wolf.**

"_**Maybe there IS some merit to his story,"**_** he thought. The ears confused him. As he sat down, he could tell that not only could Duman see him, but he could hear him through his music. It is strange for '**_**humans'**_** to have such remarkable senses. "Hey, how's it going?" he asked. Duman looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Ogron looked at the screen of Duman's iPod. The song he was listening to was in Gaelic. He decided to take a shot, and the popular idiots were slack jawed and wide eyed- he spoke the language perfectly, accent and everything. They still refused to get near him. Gantlos and Anagan were shocked, too, as they started to have a conversation like any normal people would. No one ever heard Duman talk.**

"**Dia ****dhuit**** (Hello)," Ogron said. **

"**Dia**** is ****Muire ****dhuit**** (God and Mary bless you)," Duman replied with a suspicious expression. How on Earth did this guy speak his home language? Most people at this school were too ignorant to learn other languages. When Duman talked, his extremely sharp canine teeth were slightly visible from a distance. Ricky and friends backed up and squished even closer together. This just gave them more basis for those ridiculous claims.**

"**Conas ****at****à ****t****ù (How are you)?" Ogron asked.**

"**Tàim**** go ****maith**** (I'm well)," he replied. **

"**Ogron is ****ainm ****Dom**** (My name is Ogron)," he said. "Cad is ****ainm ****duit**** (What is your name)?"**

"**Duman," he said. "****Deas bualadh leat**** (Nice to meet you)." **

"**Agus má tá tú chomh maith**** (And you as well)," he said. "A ****bhfuil ****Béarla ****agat**** (Do you speak English)?"**

"**Go ****líofa****, ach ****tá ****mé ****nach**** I ****gcéill**** go ****bhfuil**** (Fluently, but I pretend not to)." **

"**Cén****fáth**** a ****bhfuil ****tú**** a ****dhéanamh**** (Why do you do that)?" **

"**Mar sin an ****fhágann**** said ****Dom ****féin**** (So they leave me alone)," Duman said with a laugh. "Go ****bhfuil**** said ****ródúr**** a ****thuiscint**** (They are too stupid to understand me)." They sat laughing for a few seconds, causing the others to wonder what they were saying. Now, his fangs were clear as day. Two on top, two on bottom, sharp as razors, shaped like a wolf's but fit to his face. That wasn't incriminating at all. They looked natural, but terrifying. Those things could do some real damage. **

"**An-****fíor**** (Very true)," Ogron replied. "****Maith****, ****bhí ****sé ****deas ****Ag ****caint**** ah ****thabhairt ****duit**** ach ****ba ****chóir ****Dom ****dul**** (Well, it was nice talking to you but I should go)." **

"**Ceart**** go ****Leor****, ****beannacht**** (Ok, goodbye)," Duman said. "****Ní mór dúinn labhairt arís roinnt ama**** (We must talk again sometime)." Ogron put his hand on Duman's shoulder. Duman whipped his head towards Ogron's face, very surprised at what he felt. That familiar sensation of electricity coursing in and out of his body was unmistakable. This guy was a wizard, same as him. Ogron knew that he knew his secret, and his hunch was correct. All three of them were wizards. He smirked knowingly at Duman.**

"**Take care of yourself," He said in English, and Duman pretended not to know what he meant, but Ogron knew he did. He walked back to Ricky and his friends while Duman just stared his way. They all looked confused. "Well, I know why he doesn't talk."**

"**Why?" Ricky asked, still in awe.**

"**He doesn't speak English," he said. Everyone looked even more surprised. They all looked back at Duman who had already put his ear buds back in.**

"**Well, what does he speak?" **

"**Gaelic."**

"**What is that?"**

"**The traditional language of Ireland, it's his home," he said. "And he isn't a wizard."**

"**How do you know?" one of his 'friends' asked skeptically.**

"**With a wizard, there's this weird sensation when you make contact with them, like electricity. I didn't feel it when I touched his shoulder, so he isn't one."**

"**Well, what about being a werewolf? And the teeth and growling and weird hair and eyes?"**

"**He's no werewolf. The hair and eyes are genetic, they glow when he's mad because he changes the angle of his head and the light shines on them differently, he growls because he learned that, the teeth are natural for people of Irish descent, I have them too," He put his finger in his mouth and hooked his upper lip, showing that he had a set, but they weren't as sharp. "But I'm a lot of other things too, I'm also older. He's nothing bad." The fangs weren't real, but they were good for throwing suspicion. Metamorphosis took care of that and he would get rid of them later.**

"**Well, if you say so," someone said. They were interrupted by the loudspeaker, the principal was telling everyone to get to their dorms. **

"**Which one are you in?" Ricky asked. Ogron looked at the sheet of paper that was mailed to his house. **

"**D801."**

"**Hey, me and some of my buddies are across the hall, D802. We can show you the way, White Thorne is pretty big," He said. Ogron had to have seen that one coming.**

"**Sure," he said, less than enthusiastic about having to be around them more. They walked up to the eighth floor, the very top of White Thorne, and headed towards the dorms. There were boys running back and forth between rooms, chasing friends who had taken things. However, they were avoiding one room in particular: D801. Ricky was confused by this, so he went to look at the listing. As soon as he saw it, the reason was clear.**

"**Oh," he said darkly. "You're bunking with **_them__**." **_**Ogron knew who 'they' without looking. The only people that the entire school was afraid of. The list read "Ogron, Anagan, Gantlos, Duman". When he opened the door the students stopped to watch this poor soul walk to his doom. **

"**So that's the unlucky dude who has to be with them," one said to the person next to him.**

"**I would hate to be him," he replied. None of his roommates were in yet, but they had already claimed beds. **

"_**Screw them," **_**Ogron thought. **_**"I have seniority; I could whip their asses if they get mad."**_** He moved the stuff off of the bed near the window and put it on the remaining one, sans magic, of course. This room wasn't half bad, but it was a bit dreary. Like every room, it had stone walls and worn wood floors. There were four twin beds while other rooms had bunks. Each person had a dresser and closet, but in every other room there was only two. Possibly the biggest difference was that there were four bathrooms. Everyone else had to use the community one down the hall. In Ogron's mind, it was quite the coincidence that the only nice room was inhabited by the only wizards in the school, and that they were all together. There were about four thousand students, so that is some good luck. Or someone knew what they were. But if they knew, they would have been kicked out and sent to some god-awful place. He looked out the door to see if anyone was there. Everyone had gone to their rooms to unpack. Since the coast was clear, Ogron saw no harm in using magic to put his away. His mom had done a packing spell to be sure he had enough clothes for however long he would stay and he really didn't feel like going through that. With a snap of his fingers, his bags opened and clothes flew into his dresser and hung on hangers in the closet. Everything he needed was where it should have been and he stuffed his bags into the top of his closet. With nothing to do, he lay down on his bed and stared at the ceiling. He had never really had friends and wasn't really interested in it. He had better things to do with his approximate 5,000 year lifespan than make friends. And now he was being smothered by idiots. That was just his luck. And the wizards. They all had different personalities. Gantlos seemed to ignore everyone he met. Anagan was a bit more assertive, but he seemed shy. Duman just hated everyone here, so he shut himself off by taking advantage of being Bilingual. "_Wish I thought of that,_" Ogron thought. Was he a werewolf? Who knew. None of them knew that the others were wizards and that wasn't a big surprise. Most people can't tell, but Ogron could see it. He was special. He could also absorb any kind of damage and turn it into strength. He smirked at this, knowing that it would come in handy someday. Something told him that he would need it. Amidst his daydream, Ricky barged in.**

"**Dude, what're you doing sitting in there all alone?" He looked around the room and at Ogron's neat living area. "Whoa, your room is awesome! And how'd you unpack so fast?"**

"**I just did," he said. **

"**Well, can you come help me?" Ogron sighed heavily. He was beginning to go from tolerating Ricky to hating Ricky. **

"**Fine." They walked on over to his room which was remarkably smaller than Ogron's. Two bunk beds, two closets, two dressers. Sucks for them. More groupies were unpacking stuff and trying to cram it into their drawers. This place was far too small for him. After helping the mindless dolts unpack because they were obviously too stupid to do it themselves, Ogron went back to his room. The groupies followed him like lost puppies, of course. They sat on the remaining beds and began to look through EVERYTHING they could find. Ogron's dresser, Ogron's closet, and the packed luggage of his roommates. However, Duman's stuff was already put away. Strange. "Hey, quit it." They all looked up from their snooping to pay attention to their new friend.**

"**What?" one of them asked. "Why?" Ogron sighed in frustration. At this rate, every breath he took would be a sigh.**

"**Don't you have common decency? It's rude to look through other peoples' stuff." Idiots.**

"**Well, I wanna see what they carry around, ya know?" Ricky said. "C'mon, it'll be fun."**

"**I'll pass," Ogron sat back and watched them go through the property of other people, though they left his alone. This went against every lesson he was ever taught. The person in Duman's stuff began to make a weird face as he saw something. Ogron raised an eyebrow and paid attention.**

"**Hey, what's this?" He held up an ancient-looking leather bound book with gold leaf details on the front. There were shamrocks on it and a bookmark inside. On the front was a crystal ball. The kid opened it and began to scan a random page. Ogron's eyes were as big as headlights now. **_**"That idiot!" **_**He would recognize those illustrations anywhere. It was a spell book. Ogron sprinted over and tore the book out of the kid's hands. "Hey, what's the big deal?" Thankfully, he didn't know what it was. It was all written in Gaelic. Duman was obviously a total moron. No mortal would carry around a spell book.**

"**This book is very old; it looks like an ancient novel. It's probably pretty fragile, don't touch it," he lied. Spell books couldn't even be destroyed by magic, much less a human. He put it back in the drawer and thanked his lucky stars, the principal announced that everyone was to prepare for the welcome dinner. The humans left and Ogron shut the door. A reversal spell made quick work of getting rid of any evidence. The dinner was casual so he didn't bother changing. Soon, his roommates walked in to get ready. They all looked Goth, so they were probably going to change into more human-accepted clothes. Anagan and Duman looked happy to see who their roommate was while Gantlos looked as indifferent as ever.**

"**So you're our roommate? Cool," Anagan said. Gantlos wasn't paying attention. They all went through their things to see what to wear. Ogron looked as though he was trying to hold back anger.**

"**You," he snarled. All three looked up at their older roommate, sort of scared.**

"**Huh?" Gantlos said. Ogron stormed over to Duman, whom he towered over, and began to speak in Gaelic (It's easier for me to write in English, so I won't try Gaelic).**

"**You idiot! Why on Earth would you bring a spell book to an all-human school?!" Duman began to get very pale and his eyes opened to the size of Ogron's balled fists. He started to back up.**

"**H-how did you know I have that?" Anagan and Gantlos looked at each other, very confused. This guy had seemed so calm earlier, and now he was yelling at a kid who was three years his junior. They wished they understood the language, so they could know what was wrong.**

"**Those unbearable humans thought it would be a good idea to look through the stuff you three brought, and one of them found it. You had better thank God that it was in Gaelic; you could have gotten us ****both**** killed!"**

"**I'm sorry," Duman pleaded. Ogron's blue eyes were glazed over with fury, he had never been so angry in his life.**

"**Sorry won't change anything," he roared. Thankfully, he had made the walls sound proof beforehand. "Just put it somewhere that no one will find it, and don't bring it out whenever anyone's around." He jabbed his finger right in the middle of Duman's chest, and being as strong as he was, Duman fell backwards onto the floor with his whole body trembling. Ogron walked over to the door, his anger beginning to recede. He grabbed the door handle and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. "Firstie," he said in English. He then walked out and slammed the door behind him, leaving the stunned middle-schoolers in his wake. They stood in silence until Anagan broke it.**

"**What the heck just happened?" He asked. Duman was still pale as a ghost, and Gantlos was actually fazed for the first time in his life.**

"**I have no idea," he said quietly. Duman was breathing as though he had just run a marathon. Ogron was so nice to him earlier, but now he didn't know if he could trust him. He knew it was wrong of him to bring that book, but he had to. They all got ready in silence and made their way to the dining hall.**

* * *

**The dining hall was a large room that took up the entire second floor. It had to be big to house all the students. There were large marble pillars placed at even increments traveling down the enormous room. The tables were adorned with white silk. This silk also made up the curtains on the stained glass windows, draped between sconces on the walls, and wrapped the pillars. A china vase of tiger lilies sat on each table. The chairs were stained hickory with red velvet upholstery. The floors were alternating white and black marble tiles. At the very end of the room were two doors big enough for the Trojan horse to come through, troops included. They were embellished with the school logo: A white rose with a green stem wrapped in a circle, four thorns sticking out of it. The decorations were obviously the work of a fairy. Ricky and company were already there and they called him over. Not wanting to make enemies just yet, Ogron went over and sat with them. He was still pissed off at Duman, but he acted like he wasn't. These guys didn't need to be in his business. **

"**Hey bro, what's up?" Someone asked. Ogron still hadn't taken the time to learn their names.**

"**Nothing," he said. They talked about random stuff; sports, food, hot teachers (Though Ogron excluded himself from this conversation. No witches taught here, and he wasn't interested in fairies or humans). The students filed in, and Ogron had never seen so many people at one time. His roommates came in together, and they saw him. He glared at Duman, his ocean eyes digging deep into his soul. Ogron was very disconcerting when he wanted to be. He was no less than 6' tall and was extremely well built. He was hansom in a terrifying sort of way, same as his father. Duman grew pale again and hid behind Anagan. He shot a distrusting look at Ogron, still not knowing what was going on. They sat at a table as far away from him as they could get. Gantlos and Anagan talked, but Duman sat in silence, antsy and squirming in his seat. He was as nervous as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. He was afraid Ogron would come flying over and send him into a wall. Or he would poison him. Or curse him. Bottom line, he was watching his back. The principal got on the mic and welcomed all of the students, the same stuff they had heard every year. Only the first graders were interested. He announced that the first course would be garden salad, and waiters came around serving the students. Outside, the thunder still raged and the rain beat against the side of the building. Ogron was looking around and noticed a teacher, a fairy, duck behind a curtain that hid a hallway. She looked like she was up to no good, but he disregarded it. One lightning strike was different. All of the lights went off, but they were powered by magic, so it should have been impossible. It was pitch black in the room, and everyone was screaming like little girls. The principal was yelling, trying to calm everyone down, but to no avail. They didn't stop. After a few minutes, the lights came back on. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. But not Ricky. He was looking all around. Up, down, left, right, even under the table.**

"**Ricky my boy, what are you looking for?" The principal asked, still on the microphone. Ricky stood up with a concerned expression.**

"**Ogron is missing, sir," he said. A wave of gasps and whispers flooded the room, and everyone started looking around. The students already liked him. Someone far away from that table stood up as well. **

"**Anagan, Gantlos and Duman are gone, too!" Everyone was even more shocked. **

"**I bet they're going to conduct experiments on him!" One said.**

"**Maybe Duman's gonna bite him!"**

"**We gotta help!" They all looked around the room. It was too dark during the outage for them to have gotten far. But they were nowhere to be found.**

* * *

Please pardon my bad Gaelic, I just started learning it :/. Also, when I downloaded it, it messed with the spacing so it probably isn't written right anymore. Also, it won't translate into exactly what I have, it is just essentially what it says.


	7. Ashen Skin

**When Ogron awoke, he was in a room with Anagan, Gantlos and Duman. They were unconscious and their motionless bodies were sprawled out on the floor a few feet away. He tried to sit up but when he did he felt a throbbing sensation in his leg, and more in his chest. He moved himself to a wall by pulling on the floor with his hands. His head was spinning from the pain radiating up the left side of his body. He looked at where it was coming from; his leg was bent the wrong way. Great. It was broken. He probably broke a rib or two as well. With each drawn breath he felt as though a serial killer was taunting him, poking and prodding with a blade at his lungs but never stabbing him. For the first time since he regained consciousness, he actually wondered where he was. The room was about the size of the master bedroom of a large house. There was furniture that reminded him of an apartment his family once lived in; it had a beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower. It was all very posh, and it was definitely a woman's room. There was nail polish and makeup on the coffee table. Unless a cross-dresser lived there. Or a gay man. Or both. Ogron had no problem with gays and lesbians being gays and lesbians, as long as they didn't do it in front of him. Now, he was wondering who the heck would do this. The last thing he remembered was a lightning strike, and then he woke up here. He tried to concentrate on finding out what had happened. But he hardly knew anything. He was in a big room with three young wizards who didn't even know that each other were wizards. He had broken bones from something. He may be in the lair of a drag queen. Isn't he having so much good luck? **

"**Well, look who woke up," a woman's voice came from somewhere he didn't see. He looked from left to right, but he saw no one.**

"**Who are you?" He asked, not the slightest bit scared. The woman laughed.**

"**The question is not who am I, the question is **_**what **_**are you," she said. A pink cloud was in the center of the room, concealing a figure. As the smoke cleared, the teacher who ducked out of the dining hall slowly walked towards Ogron. He stood up on his right leg and let his left dangle. He never trusted fairies. She looked down at his leg and smiled. "I see you've noticed what I did to you. I'm sorry for it, but I had to make sure you didn't get away." Ogron looked at the others. All unharmed. Maybe she took pity on younger souls.**

"**What do you want with us?" If she did this to him, she had it coming sooner or later. She walked over to the door and put her ear to it. She was trying to make sure no one was outside eavesdropping. **

"**Have you wondered how you were so lucky to be in a room with these three?" she gestured out to them. Ogron shook his head. "I made it so."**

"**Ok, but why?" She looked at the ground and laughed a bit.**

"**You do realize that this is an all-human school? Attendance by wizards earns Capital Punishment," she said. Ogron was surprised that she knew. **

"**How do you know about that?" She looked at him and sighed.**

"**Because I'm a witch," she said. Now Ogron was completely astonished. Witches were hated almost as much as wizards, there was no way that anyone knew or she would be sent off to Cloud Tower, that school in the Magic Dimension. "Listen. For years fairies have segregated against us for something we can't help. We cannot choose our race, but we can choose to fight back." She walked closer to him, using hand motions to emphasize her point. "You and your roommates can retaliate; strike a blow for outcasts everywhere." Ogron looked at her like she was nuts. What exactly did she want him to do? "Those fairies- they're weak, no matter what they say or how they act. Ugh, and those wings. They sit as obvious ways to hinder them. Take out their wings and they're helpless." She put her arm around him and poked him in the chest. "It would be easy for you to tear them off. Then imprison them. Show those insect-people whose boss! Without them, the paladins will leave. We know we're more powerful, why not let them know as well?" She smiled at him like a demon. He shook her off and stumbled back, not caring about his leg anymore. He had to get away from her.**

"**You… You're nuts! I'm going and telling someone there's a witch here- for all I know, you're planning on saying I thought this thing up!" he started running towards the door, his leg cringing in pain every time it hit the ground. But he didn't slow his pace.**

"**Oh no you don't!" She ran in front, reeled her leg back and blasted him right in the broken ribs. For a few golden moments, silence followed. He stood frozen with his eyes wide; the air left his lungs as fast as it was coming in. The calm didn't last long, the storm soon came. His eyes clenched shut and he wailed in torment, crumpling to the floor and trying as hard as he could to breathe. The teacher covered her ears; he could have shattered a statue with his voice. His nerves were exploding with stinging pain, and he was yearning for morphine or anything that would numb his broken bones in a split second. His agony caused the other captives to awaken with a start, and they gazed in horror at the scene before them. Their roommate who was so strong had tears streaming down his face. The teacher noticed their shock and couldn't have them know her secret. She laughed like a witch and spoke like a fairy. "I love seeing young wizards fallen from grace and writhing in pain! It speaks to my heart more than any work of art, seeing how pathetic your race really is under the shroud of pride you hold up to fend off the forces of Light." This teacher was a psychopath, relishing in the pain of others. The three younger boys were terrified she would do something like that to them, if Ogron was so much stronger than them, how would they react? Would they die of pain? She looked at them. "Ah, hello. So you've decided to join us? How nice." She noticed them trembling in fear.**

"**W-What did you do to him?!" Anagan screamed. She smiled and laughed.**

"**So you've noticed? A powerhouse kick to previously broken ribs can be quite painful, it's true. But trust me, your little friend deserved it," she said. They turned pale and looked at him. His chest had a large depression in it and his leg was bent the wrong way.**

"**Why did you do that?!" Gantlos whispered. He couldn't find the strength to yell at her. She looked at him and snickered. **

"**That's my knowledge, not yours," she said. By now, Duman was terrified and trembling. "What's wrong, little Firstie? Are you scared of the big bad fairy?" She laughed. He didn't answer. "I'm talking to you, ankle-biter, have some respect!" No answer. She picked him up by the throat. "Brat, answer me!" He pried at the clamp that closed off his airway, desperately trying to escape. Gantlos and Anagan split off to the sides when she slammed him into the wall, not loosening her grip in the slightest. "I know you speak!" **

"**Le do ****thoil****… stop a ****chur**** (Please… stop)!" he gasped against his crushing larynx. She pulled him off and crashed him into the wall harder. Black began to creep onto his field of vision and tears were forming in his eyes. His head was throbbing.**

"**In English!" She roared in his face. Whatever made her so mad was definitely not to be taken lightly.**

"**Ní feídir liom****…****dtuigeann****tú****! (I don't… understand you)!" She pointed at Ogron with her left hand, still keeping on Duman's neck. **

"**You! What did he say?!" She bellowed. Ogron opened his eyes, knowing that she was talking to him.**

"**He said that he doesn't understand you," he whispered shakily. She had almost destroyed his ability to talk. Her eyes seemed to be the flames of Hell.**

"**I know you speak English you demon-worshipping bastard! SO TALK!" She pulled him off again and swung him into the wall like a baseball bat. The three unoccupied prisoners watched in horror as they heard a sickening rip. There was a decorative emblem on the wall, and it tore into the muscle tissue on Duman's leg. Blood gushed out of this wound and the room was spinning around him, he was too dizzy to concentrate on speaking Gaelic anymore.**

"**Just stop it… Please," he said in English. She loosened her grip and smiled. She hurled his limp body across the room, splattering blood on the other wizards and all over her pristine white furniture. Gantlos and Anagan were the color of bleached fabric, gawking at the crimson liquid. Ogron was too out of it to care, even though it was all over his face.**

"**Good boy, now was that so hard? You sure went to a lot of trouble so no one would know that you spoke English," she said. Anagan and Gantlos looked at each other. They had known Duman for three years, but they had no clue he spoke anything but Gaelic. However, this wasn't their top priority at the moment. Duman had passed out from blood loss; Ogron passed out because he couldn't handle the pain. "You imps have caused me enough trouble for today," she said. She summoned a metal club. Both conscious prisoners braced themselves as the world faded away. **

* * *

**The principal ordered a search party to look for the missing students. There was no possibility that they could have gotten out of the room so fast, they were nowhere close to either of the doors. Ricky and company were the first ones to volunteer, followed by many others. They were given walkie talkies and were told to split up. They went in groups of five to each wing in every building. Ogron had convinced them that the other three weren't bad, just misunderstood. They were looking everywhere for them and calling up and down corridors, but they couldn't find hide nor hair of their AWOL classmates. They were about to give up when one of them smelled something that didn't exactly make sense so far from the kitchen: burning flesh. He wrinkled up his nose and started sniffing the air. **

"**Uh, dude, what are you doing?" Ricky asked him. The kid looked at him. **

"**Do you smell that? Something weird is in this place," he said looking around. The others smelled it, too. It wasn't a terrible smell, but it was strong. They sniffed the air and began to follow their noses. They wound corners and ascended stairways and snaked in and out of classrooms. Now, the stench was mixed with something else, it smelled like iron. Blood. They looked at each other and grew more worried with each step. The scent grew stronger as they walked on until they found a hallway with dust, cobwebs and ashes everywhere. It had no furnishings whatsoever; no lamps, rugs, tables, paintings, display cases, bookshelves, nothing except the ruins of these things. The floor and walls were charred and creaky. Now they remembered where they were. The fifth floor of the north wing of the main building had caught fire seven years ago. Because of its isolated location, no students or teachers could get out. It was condemned and suicidal to enter, but they couldn't tear it down without jeopardizing the structure of the entire castle. So here it stood ashes and all with the burned bodies of its victims still nestled firmly inside. Someone had a flashlight and when he turned it on, they saw skeletons piled on the floor, they had been trying to escape when they were burned alive. The group felt an uncontrollable wave of sadness and mourning wash over them. They never had a proper burial, their families never had last goodbyes, and no one even knew how many people died that fateful day. Everyone was brought to tears. They stood still and silent, quietly crying into their hands. Ricky bent down and picked up the skull of a young teenager. The clothes were still on his body and he had a wallet with him, made of leather and untouched by fire and decay. Inside were small bills, coins and pictures. One was of a family, one of a young child holding a baby, one of a boy around nine years old with a five year old on his lap. He held up the picture to the skull; a perfect match. He knew who this was instantly, the face bore great resemblance. He remembered his friend Blake talking about how he never sees his older brother anymore. He never did say why. Inside the wallet was something else, a piece of paper that said not to open it until eighteen. Ricky opened it up and began to read. The date was the day before the fire.**

* * *

"_Dear Blake,_

_I can't believe you're already turning eighteen! I remember the first day Mom and Dad came home with you. It was the happiest day of my life. I used to take care of you all the time when we were younger; maybe that's why you're so messed up. You always used to want to go on adventures together, so I'd take you to the woods behind the cottage. You would always pretend to be in another country, or a pirate, or an alien. It would entertain you for hours. Well, now that I'm older, I wanted to take you wherever you want for a graduation present. I'm writing this when I'm only twelve, but whatever, it's a plan for the future. You're the most important person in my life; I would do anything for you. I love you, little bro. _

_Until we get to go on our own adventure,_

_-Allister" _

* * *

**Ricky could no longer hold back the tears of sorrow. He knew Blake missed his brother, but he had no idea where he was. He could only hope he was up in Heaven, singing alongside his fellow angels. Ricky felt a hand on his shoulder; one of his friends looked down and smiled a sad smile. He put everything back in the wallet. He decided to give it to Blake, even though he wasn't eighteen yet. He deserved to know how much his brother loved him. He placed Allister's skull against the wall and pulled out a sharpie he always had in his pocket. On the wall, he wrote a short memoir. Everyone regained composure and got back to the task at hand. They had to find the others before the same fate befell upon them. They made their way down the hall through the bodies in solemn silence until they found a door that was positively oozing the smell they had followed here. They were hesitant to open it; the scent could have been leftover from the fire. But it smelled fresh. They stared at it and waited for someone to volunteer. Ricky walked up, rested his hand on the handle, took a deep breath, and opened it. It slowly creaked open and the flashlight holder shined it in the room. What they saw shocked them. It was their missing classmates. But not as they last saw them. Gantlos had a large black and blue bump on the side of his head, Anagan had burn marks and cuts all over, most notably one burn that covered half of his face, Duman's neck was bruised and his leg was ripped open, Ogron looked like he had a few broken bones. They were all bound, gagged and unconscious. They were covered in splotches of blood. The search party was all worried sick about them, they had no clue what happened.**

"**Well, that explains the smell," someone said quietly. They were frozen in place. Nothing like this had ever crossed their minds; they never thought any of their comrades would be hurt so badly. Someone obviously did it on purpose.**

"**Are they, like, ya know," one slowly pointed at them, not daring to say what he thought. Ricky checked each of their pulses and breathing one by one. **

"**I think they're alive, but just barely," he said. Gantlos began to moan and writhe in place, startling his rescuers. **

"**What is he doing?!" one said as he ducked behind another. Slowly his eyes fluttered open, but he couldn't focus on anything, his vision was all blurry. He blinked a few times at the light in his eyes and he could finally start to see. He thought it was that wacko teacher again and shot back against the wall, eyes wide, breathing hard and quivering. Most of the search party backed up, surprised at his show of fear. He was never afraid. Not even during that fire. Whatever happened must have been traumatizing. Ricky was the only one who stayed close to him.**

"**Don't worry, we won't hurt you," he calmly said as he put a caring hand on the younger teen's shoulder. Gantlos gradually stopped shaking and his breathing returned to normal. He still looked scared, though. Ricky reached behind his head and untied the cloth over his mouth. **

"**T-Thanks," he said, still a bit rattled. **

"**What happened to you guys?" Ricky asked as two other people began to untie his wrists and ankles. Gantlos looked at the ceiling thoughtfully.**

"**I… can't remember," he said. Ricky looked at the bump on his head.**

"**Could that have something to do with this?" He reached up and touched it, but Gantlos quickly slapped his hand away.**

"**Ouch, quit it!" he said. Ricky was sitting and took the flashlight from his friend. He shined it in Gantlos' eyes, but he squinted and looked away.**

"**Don't do that. I know it hurts, but let me see something," Ricky said. Gantlos tried to look back at him, but he just couldn't do it. He covered his eyes with his arm. **

"**I can't, it's too hard," he said. Ricky gave the flashlight back and rubbed his chin. He clapped his hands abruptly, causing Gantlos to jump. "What was that for?!"**

"**I think you have a concussion, you're pretty sensitive to light and sound," he replied. "Guys, call the principal, tell him we found them and they're all pretty badly hurt." The person holding the walkie talkie shook his head yes and stepped into the hallway. "Geez, where'd all the blood come from?" Gantlos looked around. His roommates and he were covered in it. Images flashed through his mind, Duman getting swung at the wall, his leg getting cut, him being thrown at the other wall. Blood pouring over them like a waterfall. He shook his head and shivered. Those were some **_**bad**_** memories. Ricky noticed and was still surprised that he was actually capable of showing emotion. "Remember something?"**

"**Yeah," Gantlos said. "Duman. She swung him at a wall. His leg got cut on something, she threw him across the room," He clenched his eyes shut, not wanting to remember it. "I don't want to talk about it."**

"**Who's she?" Ricky asked. So whoever hurt them was a girl. Gantlos shook his head and looked Ricky in the eyes. "I understand," he said. Now, the guy who called the principal came back inside.**

"**Mr. Reynolds is coming with the nurses, they're going to try to make sure these guys get better," he said.**

"**Good," Ricky replied. So he wasn't a total ass after all. He really did care about Blake, and making sure his classmates were alright. Now Gantlos looked sick and he rested on the wall. "Are you ok?"**

"**I'm really dizzy all of a sudden."**

"**You should probably rest, don't worry. We'll make sure you guys are safe," he said. Gantlos closed his eyes, it would have happened anyway. He was out like a light in two seconds flat. "That was fast." They heard noises down the hall. The principal and nurses were running towards them. Wheels squeaked along; they had brought gurneys. **

"**Where are they? What's wrong with them?" the principal asked. People were in the middle of untying the others.**

"**Right here, they're all pretty beat up. They're alive, but just barely."**

"**As long as we can get them back, how they are now doesn't matter. Do you know what's wrong with them?" Ricky looked at his friend, and the boys he had hated for so long.**

"**Only a little. All of the blood is from Duman's leg; it's got a huge gash in it. Gantlos may or may not have a concussion, but I don't know anything else." **

"**This is terrible; we need to get them to the infirmary, on the double!" Some of the guys lifted the victims onto the gurneys, careful to mind their wounds. Ricky helped Ogron. He gently lifted his friend into his arms. He looked so helpless, not to mention he didn't look as cold hearted. This was when he noticed the crimson line drawing out of Ogron's mouth. He softly set him down but even despite his care, it still hurt Ogron. He groaned as his back came in contact with the gurney, his ribs still aching. But Ricky didn't know about this, of course. They all made their way out of the abandoned hallway, taking one last look at it. Outside, most of the students had already gotten word of the condition of the missing students. They lined the halls, hoping to get a better look. They whispered rumors of wizards and werewolves tearing into the flesh of students.**

"**Maybe Duman's dad got angry and hurt them all!"**

"**Maybe Duman went psycho on us or something!" They all blamed him because of his strange behavior. Before the nurses revealed the wizards, Ricky and his friends tried to get everyone to go away.**

"**Nothing to see here!"**

"**Leave, guys. We need space so we can help them!" They tried for a while, but no one would budge. They gave up and allowed them to be sped through the halls, earning as much publicity as Drake after getting sloppy drunk. They all went silent as they noticed the severity of the injuries. Most of them didn't even know that kind of stuff was possible. They all eyed Duman. If he hadn't done this… who had? One of them stopped Ricky who was running after the nurses. He looked at him like he wanted to rip his throat out.**

"**What do you want?!" he shouted. The guy was stunned; Ricky was never mean, always kind to everyone. **

"**What happened to them?" **

"**Nothing you need to know about." He sprinted to catch up. They had already made their way down to the first floor and to the medical wing. It was a big place; not your ordinary nurses office. It reeked of rubbing alcohol and hospital fumes. The fairies tried to use magic to help them, but it wouldn't work. They all looked at them, scared for their lives. Someone was trying to keep them from receiving help. Duman continued to bleed out and every breath that Ogron took could slit a hole in his lungs. Gantlos and Anagan's injuries were not life-threatening, so they left them until they could figure this out. Their magic had never failed them before. They had to think hard to remember human methods of treatment before it was too late. **

"**This patient is going into shock!" One screamed. Everyone looked. Duman's pulse was declining rapidly and his skin was looking like the color of ashes. He had lost too much blood. They started CPR, but it wasn't working.**

"**You, out, now!" The principal yelled at the humans. They ran out, but Ricky heard electricity and stopped to look. They had gotten out the AED.**

"**Clear!" Everyone stopped touching him as the nurse put the paddles on his chest. His body jolted up, but his pulse remained still. As they prepared to try again, Ricky's friend grabbed his wrist; he wanted to get as far away from this as possible.**

"**Come on!" He yelled. Ricky had gone into a daze. All he ever did was make fun of these kids, and now one was going to die through no fault of his own. As he was dragged away, tears streaking his face, he whispered.**

"**I'm sorry, Guys."**

* * *

:| Ok, this is embarrassing. I just noticed that there were a bunch of mistakes in the past chapters. I forgot to type a few words so some of the sentences don't make sense. I don't know where they are, though, so if you spot one, PM me and I'll fix it.


	8. Beginning of the End

**Ricky woke up at 5:00 a.m. with his shirt off and his blankets all over the place. He was at the end of his bed, almost falling to the floor. His hair was matted to the back of his head and he was sweating, even though it was freezing. **_**"Maybe I had a bad dream or something." **_** He did. He would never forget the sights he saw the night before. Now he wondered if Duman was ok. He went down to the bathroom and took a shower, the hot water soothing his sore muscles. No one was awake yet. They still had two days until school, it was Saturday morning. He dried off, got dressed and walked down the seven winding stairways to the first floor of the medical wing. As he walked in the door, the woman at the front desk was typing something on her computer. She saw him from the corner of her eye. "Hi, I'm here to see—"**

"**Room 7. Go right in," she said. Ricky nodded and walked past the empty rooms until he got to where he needed to be. He was about to open the door when he saw the principal.**

"**Oh, hi Mr. Reynolds."**

"**Ricky my boy, why are you up so early?" He asked. The two were very close; the principal was good friends with his parents.**

"**I just woke up and came to see them," he said. His face began to darken. "How is Duman doing?" The principal looked down and sighed.**

"**He is alive. The nurses don't know when any of them will wake up, though. Gantlos or Anagan will probably be first. Go ahead in if you like," he said as he walked away. Ricky looked at the door and walked inside. They were all on hospital beds, each treated for their specific injury. Gantlos had a bandage on his head; Anagan had them all over and one large one that covered his left eye. Duman's leg was wrapped up, but they couldn't really do anything about his neck. Ogron had a big cast on his leg and his chest was wrapped up, even though it wouldn't help. He was hooked up to a breathing machine; he couldn't do it on his own yet. Ricky sighed, running his fingers through his short black hair. He wondered if this could have been prevented. He should have been able to do something, shouldn't he? He walked over to the window and looked out at the sunlight trickling through the trees. Unbeknownst to him, Anagan opened his eyes slowly. He couldn't see from his left eye. He put his hand up to it; there was gauze covering it. He looked around the room and watched the window. He thought he heard someone. That guy Ricky was there. Strange. He was probably here to see Ogron. His eyes got wider as he remembered the events of the previous day. He sat up quietly, using his super speed that he hadn't used since he came. He had to keep his secret, after all. He crossed his arms and spoke.**

"**Come for a visit?" Anagan asked, now sitting up in bed and staring at a startled Ricky. This stare was very disconcerting. Anagan wasn't moving his gaze and his eye was half closed, the red glistening in the sun. He looked like a cat who had found a new mouse.**

"**Dude, you scared me, I was just—"**

"**We aren't friends. Don't call me dude," Anagan said matter-of-factly. Harsh. Ricky always avoided him, so Anagan really didn't think of them as friends. Ricky nodded with a 'that figures' expression and looked at the others. **

"**What happened to you guys yesterday?" Anagan looked at the foot of his bed.**

"**Stuff."**

"**Dude—"**

"**No." Anagan cut him off again. He wasn't afraid of telling this guy how it is.**

"**Ok, but the nurses need to know so they can figure out who did this to you."**

"**You aren't a nurse." Ricky looked at him with a raised eyebrow.**

"**What is up with you? Do you hate me or something?"**

"**I don't hate you, but… Oh, how should I word this," Anagan said as he looked at the ceiling. "If you were on fire and I had a glass of water… I would drink the water." Ricky rolled his eyes. **

"**Alright. Do you know who did this to you?" Anagan growled deep in his throat, remembering it well.**

"**Yeah, it was some teacher, a fairy. At least she looked like a fairy. She acted more like a witch, though."**

"**That's weird, fairies are never mean," Ricky said, becoming suspicious. "Did you recognize her?"**

"**Nope, but she wore one of the teaching uniforms so I assumed she was a teacher. I was also watching my roommates be tortured, so I didn't stop to think about it."**

"**Forgot about that part. I think there's a spy in our midst," Ricky said, glancing out the window. **

"**Maybe. And she's deadly. Not to mention she hates us for some reason." Gantlos now sat up and rubbed his aching head. "Hey, when'd you wake up?"**

"**A few minutes ago, I was trying to go back to sleep but you two blockheads wouldn't shut up for two seconds."**

"**Glad to see you're back to your cheery self." Gantlos threw a pillow at Anagan.**

"**Whatever." Anagan smirked and threw it back. "Quit it."**

"**Make me." They kept throwing it harder and harder back and forth, usually hitting each other in the face. A smile slowly crept across Gantlos' face and soon they had both fallen back on their beds, spread eagle style, laughing their heads off. Ricky watched them, a dumbfounded grin planting itself on his face. Even with what these two had been through, they were still laughing about silly little things. They were strong enough to move on from it. **

"**You two amaze me," Ricky said, interrupting them. They both looked at him, extremely confused. **

"**Why?" Anagan asked with a raised eyebrow.**

"**You've been through some serious shit, but you're cracking up about throwing a pillow at each other. I don't know how you do it." Anagan and Gantlos looked at each other.**

"**Um, that's the point of having friends," Gantlos said. **

"**No matter what happens, we know how to ease each other's pain," Anagan continued. Ricky wondered about these two. They were friends, but they never talked in public. So they must have talked where no one would listen to them. Maybe there was more he didn't know about them. Now that he thought about it, did he have friends like that? Anagan, Gantlos and Duman were each other's safety net; they made each other feel better in times of sadness. But they never showed emotion towards anyone. They seemed to like Ogron, probably because he made an effort to be kind to them, unlike most people there. **

"**It's good to have friends like that," Ricky said. He had been taught something by two kids a year younger than him. Odd. His stomach growled, he was pretty hungry from all the excitement. **

"**You may want to take care of that," Anagan suggested. **

"**Good point," he replied, heading towards the door. "You two want anything?"**

"**Nah, there's something about the smell of burning skin that ruins an appetite. But since we've got nothing better to do, we can tag along," Gantlos said. **

"**If you think you're up to it, sure." Anagan and Gantlos both stood up and got dressed. They were back to their black clothes, they didn't really like color. As they walked down the halls, people had started waking up. It was around 6:00, and some of the restless students had gotten up. They stared at the boys who went missing. They were smiling and laughing… and with Ricky? He hated them both, why was he with them? The little group went down to the dining room and got Ricky some food. Everyone was watching them, especially their injuries. **

"**Did Anagan go blind or something?"**

"**Who knows? Where are Ogron and Duman?"**

"**Probably at the infirmary." The dining room had now filled with the hustling and bustling of hungry students racing to get food before they ran out. The eyes of thousands of students were on them, watching everything they did. None of the trio really cared; Ricky was used to people adoring him, Anagan and Gantlos were used to people abhorring them. They just sat and talked about random stuff. **

* * *

**Ogron didn't really remember waking up, but he opened his eyes and was in the middle of a dark forest. There was a trail of mist leading through the dense trees. Ogron followed it; it may have been a way out. It was about ten minutes when the trail disappeared and Ogron looked around. Now, the mist had spread all around him. He couldn't see anything except a wrought-iron gate a few yards away. He went up and pushed on it. It screeched open and he walked inside. It was a large yard with a few inches of the fog covering the ground. The gate slammed shut behind him, but he couldn't open it again. Though this worried him, he kept walking up the dirt path. A giant mansion loomed over him; it was decrepit and no less than ten stories in height. The shutters were falling off of the windows, the paint was chipping, the wood that made the siding of the house was splitting, and there was a questionable wrap around patio. He was scared, of course, with all the stories he'd heard about haunted houses. Oh yeah, he'd seen ****Poltergeist**** and ****The Legend of Hell House****, and though he didn't believe them he wasn't happy about taking the risk. There was also the annoying "what if" goblin in the back of his mind. He walked up the rasping stairs to the front door and knocked. The wood where he hit suddenly collapsed, only making his uncertainty grow. He tapped the door with the toe of his shoe and the entire thing disintegrated instantaneously. He stepped inside, greeted by cobwebs, dust and furniture seemingly from a 1400's castle. "Hello?" He called out. "Is anyone in this place?" No one answered. **_**"I guess this place is deserted."**_** He wandered around the house and stumbled upon a staircase. He climbed it all the way to the top floor. Up there was a giant floating ring. It was purplish-black and had four thorns projecting out of it. **_**"That looks like part of the school crest," **_**Ogron thought. The attic was empty except for this ring.**

"**Who goes there?" Ogron jumped and gaped at the object. Was it talking to him? "I now see that I have you scared. I ask who are you. Who goes there?" This thing must've liked rhyming. Ogron didn't know whether to answer or run. The ring wasn't happy. "Answer me, boy, or you'll not live! Your cold severed head to the monsters I'll give." It thundered, shaking the unstable building. Not wanting to be fed to creatures, Ogron replied, showing no fear.**

"**My name is Ogron your… something-ness," he said. What was he supposed to call it? This enraged the floating disc. **

"**I am the Black Circle; I am proud that it is so! And you have no idea of the trouble you shall know." **

"**I've known trouble. It's been to my house for dinner. What could you possibly do that is worse than what I've been through?" The thing laughed, violently pulsating through the house. Sawdust began to fall from the ceiling. **

"**It is nothing I will bring, an outside party looms! Something spelling terror for all that it consumes." Ogron raised an eyebrow. What the heck did this thing want? As if on cue, six huge shadows appeared on the wall.**

"**Wizard! Treacherous wizard!" One of them shouted. Ogron looked at them in fear. They each had a giant set of wings. Fairies, they were the outside party the ring mentioned. **

"**Run, child, they wish to kill you! If they get too close, that's it. You're through!" **

**Terror for all that they consume… Wizards. They spelled terror for wizards. "You are a black spot in the glorious history of White Thorne! Your kind is not accepted!"**

"**And for knowingly coming to a place where you aren't welcome, you shall pay!" One shadow raised its hands and music blasted through Ogron's ear drums. He clamped his hands to his ears, but the song was inside his head. He had to get away from this. He ran back to the stairs and started to descend.**

"**Resistance is futile, boy!" One roared. Water gushed out of her hands and flooded the attic. He was overtaken and swept down a few floors. He managed to jump out of the water and land on creaky floorboards. He shook off the excess wetness, coughing and sputtering due to the stuff going down his throat. He ran all around until he hit a dead end. **

"**You're too pale, have some sunlight!" The entire space lit up, blinding him and causing him to stumble backwards. The floor disappeared and he fell once more. He recognized this; it was the first floor. He ran to the front door in hopes of escaping these lunatics, but this wouldn't happen. There was no ground outside. No mist, no patio, just empty darkness as far as he could see.**

"**You have nowhere to go. I'll finish you off now," One said, slowly raising her hands. Ogron backed up. He didn't know what she would do, but he had two choices. "Dragon Energy!" She roared. He jumped. He plunged into the shadows. He didn't know what waited for him, but he had to do something. As he fell, his screams couldn't even escape his body. He was disintegrating. He tried to access his powers, but they weren't there. He couldn't get out of this. He wailed harder, but it was nothing but silent screams.**

* * *

**Ricky, Gantlos and Anagan decided to come back to the medical wing to see how the others were doing. Nothing had changed, so they sat and watched them. They both looked as though they were dead, not a sound escaped their inanimate bodies. But one thing did make a sound. Ogron's pulse machine was beeping faster and faster, but they had no clue why. **

"**Uh, what's going on?" Anagan asked. Ricky called the nurse in, but she didn't know what to do. She appeared concerned and tried to use healing magic, but it only seemed to make it worse. The beating sped on until Ogron awoke with a jolt. He snapped his eyes open and shot upwards in bed. Now the machine meant to keep him breathing was choking him. He tried to get it off, but there were rigid plastic straps holding it in place. He couldn't think straight, the only thing he could think of was getting it off at all costs. He was trying to talk, but it came out muffled and urgent. Only now did the bystanders notice that it was hurting him, and Ricky jumped up and unhooked it. When it was off Ogron doubled over and started coughing hard.**

"**What's wrong?" Gantlos asked. He looked like he was trying to get something out. The nurse got him a bucket, thinking he was going to throw up. He coughed one last time, sending water out of his lungs and allowing him to breathe. He was panting and fell backwards onto his bed, pale and sweating. They were all staring at him. **

"**Are you ok?!" Ricky asked. Ogron was still catching his breath. **

"**Ouch," He said, groaning. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, he was ok. **

"**What was that stuff?" Gantlos asked. Ogron thought for a minute and looked in the bucket. He remembered the 'dream'. **

"**Seawater. It was seawater." The racket woke Duman up, and he sat up in bed seeming really tired. He licked his lips and fell face forward so he looked like a pink-headed taco.**

"**Tá**** tart ****orm****!" He dragged out, and everyone looked at him with blank expressions. **

"**Uh, what did he say?" Anagan asked Ogron. **

"**He said he was thirsty." The nurse got him a glass of water and he took it down in five seconds. He wiped his mouth and fell backwards. **

"**Nimhneach mo mhuineál****," he continued, rubbing his neck and then cringing. Everyone looked at Ogron again and he rolled his eyes. It would be so much easier if Duman would just SPEAK ENGLISH.**

"**His neck hurts," he said. He turned to Duman and started another conversation that no one could understand. "Feel like speaking English yet?"**

"**What? Oh, yeah. No, not really."**

"**Please do, I'm tired of translating."**

"**Meh. But then I have to talk to people."**

"**Don't be stupid and quit acting like an antisocial kid!" Ogron said jokingly. Duman laughed, knowing that he was pushing it.**

"**I think I'll test my limits—" he said, but got distracted. Ogron had a blackish ring on his finger. "What's on your finger?"**

"**Huh?" He looked down. He remembered it; it was talking to him in his dream. "Oh, it's nothing." Duman looked at him with an "Oh really?" expression. He could hear the lying tone in his voice.**

"**No, seriously, what is it? I can tell by your voice that it was important in something. Maybe in that dream you had last night?" Ogron was astonished. How did Duman know that if he wasn't awake? He was now smiling at him like one of those demonic children in horror movies.**

"**How do you know about that? I haven't told anyone," Ogron said. Duman snickered. Maybe he WAS a demon child. **

"**I may or may not have taken on the form of a Nightmare Gargoyle and eaten your dream when it was finished." Ogron looked at him like he was a psycho.**

"**WHAT?!" Duman laughed again. He was really starting to freak Ogron out. "What do you mean you took on the form?"**

"**Oh, you didn't know that? My specialty is changing my appearance and species. I also have animal senses and I'm half animal. That's where my teeth and eyes come from. That's also why people think I'm a werewolf."**

"**Ok, but I can change my appearance, too, and I don't have that other stuff."**

"**Yeah, most people can do that, but it takes a lot of energy. I can change constantly for a month without breaking a sweat."**

"**Wow, that's pretty awesome," Ogron said. "But why did you eat my dream?!"**

"**Well, I needed to wake up somehow," he said shrugging, like it wasn't weird at all. The others were looking at these two, completely lost. Ogron was freaking out and Duman was laughing. "Anyways, that dream of yours was pretty weird. It wasn't just a dream; it was real, wasn't it?"**

"**I guess so. How else would I have the Black Circle and be coughing up seawater?"**

"**Exactly. And what do you think of those fairies? Think they'll actually attack you?"**

"**I have no clue. I can't help but think that the dream and what that witch told me are connected somehow."**

"**What'd she say?"**

"**That we should capture all of the fairies and rip off their wings and imprison them," he said as a continuous sentence. Duman's face slowly turned into shock.**

"**Ok, that's a bit too elaborate to have just thought of it now…"**

"**Yeah, that's what she told me before you guys woke up." Duman leaned back and looked at the ceiling, thinking.**

"**Well, what do you want to do about it? Do you think it's our destiny or something?" Ogron took the ring off of his finger and stared at it.**

"**Maybe, I'm not really sure just what to think about it. We could always ask the others." Duman was confused.**

"**What do you mean? What others?" Ogron looked at him and smiled, he still didn't know, even after the incident. **

"**Anagan and Gantlos are wizards, too," Ogron said. Duman's face was pure shock. He whipped his head back and forth. Anagan, Gantlos, Anagan, Gantlos, they started wondering what the heck was wrong with him.**

"**Seriously?!" Ogron nodded his head.**

"**Yup, and they both have no idea that the others are wizards. They don't know about us, either." Duman looked off to the distance. He was over the shock already.**

"**Well isn't that something. Maybe we ****should**** talk to them about it," Ogron knew what Duman meant by that and he started speaking English again. **

"**So, you're ready to speak English now?" Everyone was confused as they looked at Duman who seemed to understand Ogron. He shook his head yes.**

"**Wait, I thought he just spoke Gaelic," Ricky said. He turned to Duman. "Do you speak English?" He asked slowly.**

"**Yes, quite well, actually," Duman said. Everyone gaped at him. He spoke it without hesitation and without an accent.**

"**Wait, did you know about this?" Gantlos asked Ogron. He shook his head yes. "Since when?"**

"**Since I first talked to him." Everyone had that look of 'are you freaking serious?' on their faces.**

"**Really. And it didn't occur to you to tell someone?" Ricky said.**

"**Uhm, nope." He said. Ogron needed a way to get Ricky and the nurse to leave. He looked at the ceiling and a thought popped into his head. "Hey, Ricky, remember that book we saw yesterday?" He said, trying to make him understand without really saying it. Ricky looked confused, but he soon got it.**

"**Oh! Yeah, I remember. What about it?" He said just as exaggerated as Ogron. Duman looked at him like he was crazy. Ogron discreetly gestured for him to calm down.**

"**I want to read it. Do you mind getting it for me?"**

"**Sure thing." Ricky leisurely walked out the door. Ogron turned to the nurse.**

"**We're fine for now, if we need anything we'll let you know." She walked out to her desk and shut the door behind her. Now Ogron focused his attention on the others. "Ok, listen. We have about as much time as it takes Ricky to get to our room and back to talk. Duman, where's your book? Did you put it somewhere safe like I said?"**

"**He couldn't find it if he tore the room apart."**

"**How do you know?" Ogron asked. **

"**It's in the wall." Ogron looked at him with a confused face. "Don't ask questions, just get on with business." Ogron shook his head.**

"**Anyways," he said. How Duman got the book in a wall is something the world may never know. "I've been meaning to talk to you guys since I came here, and now I have even more reason to." Anagan and Gantlos looked at each other. Whatever Ogron wanted to talk about, Duman seemed in on it as well.**

"**Why since you came?" Anagan asked. Ogron sighed.**

"**Because since I came here, I've known that you three are wizards." Anagan and Gantlos were purely shocked. They didn't know about each other, or that Ogron knew.**

"**You're a wizard?!" They pointed at each other and said it at the exact same time. "But what-how-huh?"**

"**That's an interesting reaction," Duman mentioned.**

"**You don't seem so surprised," Anagan said. Ogron was sitting back and watching the show.**

"**I was a minute ago."**

"**Is that what the spazzing was for?"**

"**Yup," he said. "By the way, why were you so surprised that I speak English?"**

"**Uh, because we had no clue?" Gantlos said. So they didn't remember what he said when that freak was smashing him against the wall. However interesting that was, both Duman and Ogron just let it go. It wasn't important and they had things to discuss.**

"**Now back to the task at hand," Ogron said.**

"**Speaking of that," Anagan cut in. "You can't tell anyone, I'm begging you! Do you even know what they'll do to us?!" Ogron put his hands up.**

"**Hey, slow down. Why on Earth would I say anything?"**

"**Well, it isn't legal for us to be here," Gantlos said.**

"**It isn't legal for me to be here, either." Gantlos and Anagan looked at him strangely.**

"**What do you mean?"**

"**I'm a wizard, too," he said. Slack-jaws; slack-jaws EEEEVVERRYYYWHEEEEERE! **

"**So… we're all wizards?" Anagan asked rhetorically. Nothing answered except silence. Gantlos and Anagan looked suspicious; Ogron and Duman were just waiting for someone to talk. Cricket Cricket. No one said a thing. Since he didn't want Ricky walking in on any sensitive topics, Ogron just got the ball rolling. He told them about the witch and what she said, he told them about his dream, he told them about the ring. They were growing steadily more confused until Ogron was finally done.**

"**Ok… that's kinda weird." Gantlos said slowly.**

"**I know," Ogron said, looking at his newly decorated finger. "What I'm wondering is why us?" he said. Ricky got back just then and the wizards dispersed and pretended like nothing was happening. **

"**Hey, I couldn't find that book," Ricky said.**

"**That's ok, I'll just read it later," he said. **

* * *

**At 9:00, the principal came over the loudspeaker announcing that the students were to get ready for "dorms only" at 9:30. The students all went to their assigned washrooms while the wizards slipped into their room unannounced. Ogron just healed their remaining wounds. At his asking, Duman waved his arm towards the wall. The book flew into his hand. **

"**That's convenient," Anagan said. "Why'd you want that book?" **

"**Because," Ogron said as he took it from Duman. "It may help us figure out what all this means." They lay on the ground facing each other with the book in the middle. He snapped his fingers and the book turned to a page with the Black Circle on it.**

"**That's nice, now what does it say?" Gantlos asked. Ogron waved his hand over the page and it translated into English. The letters turned gold and light spiraled out of the book, looking amazing in the darkness of the room. "Whoa…"**

"**I know," Duman said. He never got tired of that. "Now, all you have to do is ask the guardian to appear. I've never done it before, so that's all I know." Ogron put his hand on the page and closed his eyes.**

"**Guardian of the book, please come." A little glowing figure rose out of the book; she was wearing a dress with a hood that covered her eyes. She couldn't have been more than six inches tall.**

"**In ancient Greece, they had a myth about the Oracle of Delphi, the most powerful oracle; she could tell you whatever you wanted to know. I guess this is her," Duman said in awe.**

"**You guess right, young one," she said in a kind voice. "I have been asleep for thousands of years; why have you awakened me?"**

"**We want to know why all of this has happened to us," Duman said. "And what everything means." She smiled and giggled.**

"**It is a simple thing you ask of me," she said. "Your kind is angry with the Earth Fairies. The task has fallen upon the four of you to give them a redress of grievances, a way to get out. Without the fairies, wizards will finally be able to live in peace. The Black Circle wishes to help you, so he is on your red-headed friend's finger. He will give you the power to take their magic and imprison them." The young wizards had eyes the size of bowling balls.**

"**That's crazy," Ogron said. The Oracle shook her head yes.**

"**It may seem so, but the universe has chosen you. You most likely won't start taking the magic until you are older and your hearts have turned to darkness." She held her hands above her head, holding a picture of four older men. "This is what you will look like when you are of age," she said. Anagan said something he thought he would never say.**

"**Dude…" **

"**No way," Gantlos said. They all had longer hair and were dressed in a Goth fashion; even more so than they already did. Gantlos held a cowboy hat down over his eyes, Anagan shot a sideways glare at the camera, and Duman was crouching in the front and looking like an animal on a hunt. Ogron had his hand up and was smirking at the camera. "Is that really us?"**

"**It is," she said. "You know what must do, young wizards. Go forth and seize your destinies." She sunk back into the book, taking the gold light with her. The room was pulled into darkness. The group of friends sat in silence. The oracle had a point. Wizards would be able to live in peace if those bugs were gone. Without saying a word, they all crawled into bed. **

**The next morning they still hadn't talked to each other at all, but they were thinking about everything. They thought about it. And thought about it. And thought about it. The more thinking they did the better this plan was sounding. They were out in the forest since students had free walkabout when school wasn't in session, and they met under a large oak tree. **

"**I think we should do it," Gantlos said, hungry for revenge on those pathetic insects that had made him suffer so much. **

"**I think you're right," Anagan continued. They all agreed on it, the fairies would soon be going down. And lucky them, a teacher walked over to their little hiding spot. She had heard everything.**

"**Wizards, I should have known," she said, startling the group. "You're all coming to the principal's office and from there you will go to Oblivion and spend the rest of eternity in agony. Are you ready to face your destiny?" She sneered at them. Destiny. Ogron looked at the ring on his finger. **

"**Of course," he said, a demonic laugh rising in his throat. The others smirked. They knew what was happening. They surrounded her and held hands. "Hunters, unite. May the doors to the Black Circle open wide," the petrified fairy looked around in fear as she was surrounded by a blackish-purple vortex. A feeling of dread washed over her as she was transformed against her will. A sickening numbness grew in her stomach as she felt something ripping its way out of her back. Her wings. They were gone. Next thing she knew, two great doors opened underneath her and she began a descent to who knows where. Then they slammed shut and disappeared. The wizards fell to the ground, fatigued by the impulsive use of power. But they felt as if they were stronger. And it felt **_**good**_**. **

"**That was invigorating," Duman growled as he licked his fangs and laughed. "I'm gonna have fun ripping the wings off of those germs." **

"**Same," Anagan said. **

"**Well," Ogron said with a smile creeping across his face. "The Great Fairy Hunt has begun." **


End file.
